The Legacy of Regulus Black, the Story Continues
by Gin110881
Summary: What happened to Harry and Ginny after their mysterious Portkey journey and how did the legacy of Regulus Black change their lives, up to the defeat of Tom Riddle? Becomes more and more AU during the story. Sequel to The Legacy of Regulus Black.
1. Chapter 1: Grim Old Place

**AN:** Quite a few readers asked me if there'll be a sequel to The Legacy of Regulus Black. After nine months of plotting and writing, the time has finally come.

Enjoy reading!

* * *

 **Wednesday, August 9th, 1995**

 _"Wait," Ginny shouted, looking into Harry's eyes. She walked up to him and hugged him tightly._

 _Harry, surprised by the sudden gesture, froze for a moment, but instantly relaxed and returned the hug._

 _"Who knows when I'll get the next chance to thank you privately, Harry," Ginny whispered._

 _"Thank for what?" Harry asked in surprise._

 _"For everything, for nurturing, for listening, for talking about things you don't like to talk about."_

 _"Oh," said Harry softly, looking into her eyes. "You're welcome; you would have done the same for me, wouldn't you?"_

 _Lost in Harry's emerald green eyes, Ginny whispered, "Anytime."_

 _Reaching for the Portkey, she murmured, "Back to Padfoot!"_

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Ginny felt the strange sharp yank behind her navel and the room around them disappeared. The already familiar feeling of flying on a broom without the wind blowing into her face returned. A few seconds later, the strange sensation suddenly subsided, and the two of them fell on the wooden floor in the kitchen of No 12 Grimmauld Place.

They slowly untangled their limbs, stood up and looked into the grinning face of Sirius Black, sitting at the kitchen table nursing a cup of tea. "Hi kiddos, it's about time. What took you so long?"

"Emm," Ginny tried to answer, slightly blushing. She was interrupted by two arms slamming around her middle and literally forcing the air out of her lungs. "Ginny, I'm so glad you're back," her mum cried, sobbing.

"Help...air, Mum, you're killing me," she wheezed out as her mother released her then turned to Harry in an attempt to crush him to death, too.

"Molly, don't crush them," Sirius chuckled. "Harry, Ginny, sit down. Your mother just told me she wanted to fix some breakfast, I didn't know she changed her plans into killing you."

"Oh, yeah, you must be hungry, four days without a proper meal." Molly let Harry go and marched back to the stove. "What do you want? Eggs, bangers, bacon, baked beans?" she enquired excitedly, placing two cups of tea in front of the teenagers.

"Everything but lamb stew or biscuits is fine for me." Ginny's answer made Harry chuckle. She grasped the leather bag they had brought from the island, laid it under a chair, and sat down.

While her mother was busy preparing breakfast and the bacon and eggs were sizzling in the pan, Harry whispered to Sirius, "We need to talk to you." When Sirius raised his eyebrows, he added, "in private." Ginny nodded affirmatively.

"Okay," Sirius said softly, "I'll try to set something up."

Suddenly, Harry felt someone crashing into him. Turning his head, he saw a big bush of brown hair belonging to none other than his friend Hermione Granger.

"HARRY!" she gave a cry of joy when she saw the home-comers sitting at the kitchen table. "Where have you been? You've been gone for days! We were so worried," she cried, turning to Ginny to give her the same treatment.

"Hermione, sit down. Do you mind if we wait to tell you everything after breakfast?" Harry grinned at his friend. "I'm pretty sure, Ron also wants to hear our story. So, please wait a bit."

It was obvious that Hermione wasn't pleased with the answer, but she managed to put a smile on her face. "Okay, but how did you just disappear?"

Ginny could barely suppress a giggle about Hermione's inquisitiveness. "We found a letter to Sirius in Regulus's room, and unfortunately, this letter turned out to be a Portkey."

"What's the letter about?" Hermione couldn't resist asking, "and who's Regulus?"

Harry rolled his eyes, "Regulus is Sirius' brother, Hermione, and since the letter is addressed to Sirius, I think he should read it first, and decide whether he'll tell us about the content or not, don't you think so? " When Sirius nodded in agreement, Harry continued, "maybe, we'd better tell Sirius everything we've found before we'll meet with you and Ron. We've brought a few things with us we need to give Sirius. We'll tell you after lunch what happened to us."

"Yes. Of course," Hermione replied, defeated.

"Ginny, how's your fever doing?" Her mother suddenly seemed to remember.

"I'm fine," she replied.

"I'll take a look at you later. How did you get the fever anyway?" her mother asked, concerned.

"Harry thinks the cold water caused the fever. We didn't have a shower and had to wash ourselves outside. When I got the fever, Harry took good care of me. He even made calf-packings to reduce the temperature," Ginny giggled giving Harry a wide grin.

"Calf-packings?" Hermione shot her an intrigued look.

"Yes, calf-packings against the fever. We didn't have a fever potion." Ginny blushed slightly.

"I know what calf-packings are good for," Hermione replied with a mischievous grin, "but I didn't know Harry knows how to do them."

"Well, he knows," Ginny confirmed. "It helped a lot. I felt already better before I took the fever potion last night."

"Last night? You got the letter last night? Why didn't you come home last night, young Lady?" Molly shot her daughter an inquiring look.

"I wanted to wait until the morning." Harry chipped in, looking at Mrs Weasley.

"Why," she asked in surprise.

"I didn't want to arrive here with the house full of nosy Order members," Harry said. At Mrs Weasley's astonished look, he continued, "Yes, Ginny told me about the Order. It's nice to have someone who doesn't withhold important information from me. I also wanted Ginny to rest a bit before being questioned here."

"Questioned? You're not being questioned." Mrs Weasley looked at him in surprise.

"Oh." Harry sat back down. "I just had a different impression." With a stern face, he glanced at Ginny and ... winked at her.

Turning to Sirius, he asked, "Sirius, is it okay if we meet in half an hour in your room? We'll give you the things Regulus left for you and tell you what we know about it. But first, I'd like to take a shower and look for a change of fresh clothes. "

"Oh yeah. Me too. A nice hot shower is a perfect idea," Ginny agreed.

"Ginny, when you've done showering, I need your help preparing dinner for tonight." Her mother turned to Ginny. "The Order will be meeting here tonight and they'll all be hungry."

"But first we need to talk to Sirius," Harry objected. "We'll both help you with the dinner afterwards, Mrs Weasley," Harry assured her, "and we'll tell you what happened to us. Promise."

Ginny's mother gave the two teenagers a thoughtful look and nodded. "Well, alright."

Ginny noticed Hermione following the dispute all the time with growing interest, giving Harry an inquisitive look.

Turning to Harry, Ginny asked, "Are you finished?" When he nodded, she got up, stacked their plates and cups, reached for the cutlery and brought everything to the sink. Turning to the door, Ginny grabbed the leather bag from under her chair and announced, "I'll take a long hot shower. I'll meet you in Sirius's room when I'm ready." Giving Harry a last quick smile, she headed towards her room.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Ginny picked a fresh change of clothes from her wardrobe and headed for the shower when Hermione entered the room, giving her a bright smile, "Well. Calf-packings."

"Yep," Ginny answered straight-faced, "I was really badly off the night before last."

"And Harry?" Hermione raised her eyebrows.

"He took good care of me," Ginny responded, "and before you ask, we talked quite a lot for a lack of other company, and it was very enlightening."

"You have to tell me all about it," Hermione demanded eagerly. "It seems almost as if your crush is back."

"No, Hermione. Definitely not," Ginny denied. " I think we're on a good way toward becoming good friends, that's all." With a thoughtful smile, she added in her mind, 'for the moment.'

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Fifteen minutes later, Ginny walked up the stairwell to Sirius' room. As she approached the door, she noticed it was ajar. She knocked briefly and pushed the door open.

The room was chaotic, the bed was not made, a pile of laundry lay spread on the floor behind the bed, probably dirty.

Sirius was sitting on the edge of his bed, Harry in the chair at the desk. The armchair in the corner next to a bookshelf was cleared, probably for her.

Ginny headed to the desk, shoved the things lying on it to the far corner, opened the leather case, and spread the contents on the now vacant surface of the desk. She took the wand they had brought from the island and put it in the back pocket of her jeans, "It's mine."

"It's ours," Harry corrected her.

"If you're nice to me." She grinned back.

Sirius got up and walked over to the desk. "What do we have here?"

"This is the letter we told you about," Ginny explained, handing him the envelope. "Sorry, we already read the letter, we were hoping to find a clue how to get back home after the damned thing abducted us."

Sirius took the envelope, pulled out the letter and read it silently.

 _Sirius,_

 _I need to apologize for the involuntary kidnapping, but when you find this letter, I'm probably not alive any more._

 _You are now in the cottage where I did my secret research. The cottage, in fact, the whole island, is an heirloom that uncle Alphard left to me._

 _You were right, it wasn't a good idea to get involved with the Dark Lord. Lately, I have experienced very disturbing things. I always thought the Dark Lord was fighting for our ideas. However, when he recently required Kreacher to help him on one of his missions, it became clear to me that he is pursuing his own goals. In search of ways to become immortal, he made Horcruxes. If you don't know what a Horcrux is, feel free to check out the bookshelf in the cottage for books on the subject. It's the most disgusting kind of black magic I've ever heard of. I'm sure the Dark Lord made at least two Horcruxes. The one, a medallion once belonged to Salazar Slytherin, Kreacher had to hide for the Dark Lord in a grave by the sea. I'm going to attempt retrieving and destroying it this evening with the help of Kreacher. I'm not sure if I'll survive this venture if the Dark Lord ever finds out about it. I suspect the Dark Lord gave another Horcrux to Bellatrix Lestrange. A few weeks ago, after drinking too much at a victory party, she bragged how much the Dark Lord trusts her, that he has even entrusted her with one of his treasures for safekeeping. I don't think she really knows what she's hiding for him._

 _Anyway, I think these things are too important to be forgotten if I don't survive my mission tonight. I hope my knowledge is in good hands with you._

 _Take care of yourself!_

 _Regulus_

Slowly the hand holding the letter began to shake; tears rose in his eyes. Deeply moved, he shook his head and mumbled with tear-filled eyes, "Reg, you stupid, idiotic, lovable bastard. Why did you never tell me about it?"

Heavily breathing, still shaking his head in disbelief, he went back to the bed and sat down again. Resting his elbows on his knees, he covered his face with his hands.

Visibly affected, the two teenagers watched as Sirius silently shook his head, occasionally sobbing.

Ginny glanced at Harry. When he returned her gaze, she nodded her head in the direction of Sirius. Sirius was Harry's godfather and she would support him in everything but didn't want to give the impression that she'd intrude. It took a moment for Harry to understand her gesture and walk over to his godfather. He sat down next to him and put an arm around his shoulder.

Ginny slowly followed to the bed and sat down on Sirius's other side, leaning her shoulder against his, silently showing her support.

"Are you okay?" she heard Harry ask in a soft voice.

"Yeah, everything will be alright," Sirius replied, squaring his shoulders. "It's just that we quarrelled for so long, ever since his third or fourth year at Hogwarts when he'd started to worship his Dark Lord, like most of his friends in Slytherin. Earlier...when we still were children we always got on well. He was only one and a half years younger than me, and we often played together as children. Later ... later he just despised me, laughed at me with his friends, and warned me where I would end up because of my wrong friends and views."

Sirius put his arms around the shoulders of the two teens sitting next to him and managed a faint smile, "In the end, it's good to know that he eventually turned his back to his Dark Lord. I never knew what exactly happened to him. One day he just disappeared without a trace."

Sirius got up, took a deep breath and headed back to the desk. "What else do we have here?"

Ginny and Harry followed him. "Sirius, do you know what a Horcrux is?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"Honestly ... I don't know," Sirius admitted, "I've never heard the term."

"Okay," Harry continued, "these two books contain useful information about Horcruxes. In a nutshell, a Horcrux contains a part of a soul of a witch or a wizard. By creating a Horcrux you can ensure that you don't really die when you die. As long as a part of your soul, a Horcrux, exists in this world, you can come back to life. Regulus found out that Voldemort created Horcruxes, and this probably was the reason he didn't die when ... you know. "

"Bastard," Sirius swore.

Harry took a worn book from the desk and handed it over to his godfather. "This is the Family Journal of the Black family, so it's yours. Regulus deposited it in the cottage on this island. Apparently, he didn't want anyone to find it here. That's probably also the reason all the books were there in the cottage, and not at Grimmauld Place. By the way, there are even more books in the cottage which seemed to be quite useful. In the journal, we found some very interesting information about Horcruxes; information obviously not included in the books on Horcruxes. So, and here we have the map of the islands. We'll probably need it to find the way back."

For the next couple of hours, they told Sirius what they'd already found in the books and the Family Journal and discussed the related text passages. Sirius was visibly impressed but made a calm and concentrated impression.

"Seems, my dear brother left a tremendous task for me," Sirius smiled at the two teens, "but it's good to finally have a something to do, instead of just hanging around this damned house."

"We should tell Dumbledore about it, shouldn't we?" Harry asked reluctantly

"Yes, we should," Sirius nodded affirmatively. "I'll talk to him tonight after the Order meeting."

Harry gave Sirius a thoughtful gaze and asked abruptly, "Sirius, do you know why Voldemort is after me? Why always me? I didn't do anything to him."

"Sorry, I don't know anything specific, Harry. Just, about fifteen years ago, Dumbledore advised your parents to go into hiding. He said he'd received information suggesting that Voldemort wanted to kill them."

"What information? How did he know? And, if Dumbledore said Voldemort was after 'my parents', why is he now after 'me'? Do you think Dumbledore is hiding something from me?"

"I don't know, sorry." Sirius gave him an apologetic look.

"You could ask Dumbledore tonight," Ginny interjected.

Looking into Harry's eyes, Sirius put his arm on his shoulder. "Good idea, I'll try and get you some answers, Harry. Promise."

"Thanks, Sirius. Before we go to lunch, what do you think we can tell Ron and Hermione?" Harry looked at Sirius expectantly. "I don't want to keep secrets from them, so I'd prefer to tell them everything I know. You need to decide for yourself what you're going to tell the adults. But I don't think it would be a good idea to spread the knowledge about the Horcruxes all over the place."

"Everything about the Black Family Journal, especially the merge of soul parts, is between ourselves only, that's clear," Sirius replied, his eyes wandering from Harry to Ginny. "Everything else you can tell your friends, under the condition that they don't talk about it with others."

Harry gave him an astonished look, "Sounds like you don't want to tell Dumbledore about the Family Journal?"

"I'm not sure yet," Sirius said thoughtfully, "I'll definitely talk to him about the Horcruxes, and I'd also lend him the books if he wants them. But I guess he'll probably know what Horcruxes are anyway, so it wouldn't really matter, would it? However, he won't get hold of the Family Journal. I won't even tell him about it. If we later think there's something he needs to know, I'll tell him about it, or offer him a copy of the respective passages."

"Do you really think Dumbledore knows about Horcruxes?" Ginny bit her lower lip.

"To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised," Sirius chuckled.

"If he knows about Horcruxes, he'll surely know if the diary was a Horcrux, too. Don't you think?" Ginny's gaze wandered from one to the other.

"Interesting question," Sirius grinned thoughtfully, "Dumbledore seems to be a man of many secrets. I'd say, let's wait. If I get the impression that he is ready to be honest with me, I'll be honest with him. I'm really looking forward to the conversation with Dumbledore tonight."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

When Sirius, Harry, and Ginny entered the kitchen, they were received with a great fuss. The twins gave them a wide grin.

"Potter, how did you get the idea that part of your partner's duties is to kidnap our ickle little sister?" Fred threw him a challenging look, "Apparently, we need to have a serious word with you."

"Ah, right George," Ginny interjected, "First, we already had a word with Sirius, second, you still wanted to tell me what you and Angelina were doing in that broom cupboard, and why it involved Angelina's knickers in your pocket ... "

"That was Fred, Ginny. You are confusing us again," George deadpanned.

"I don't confuse you, Angelina is your girlfriend, George," Ginny replied unperturbed.

"I had detention with Flitwick, so Fred went on the date for me." George pulled up his right eyebrow confidently.

"Anyway," Ginny rolled her eyes, straight-faced, "you'd better take care of your own business."

Shaking her head, she took the empty seat next to Harry, who was talking to Ron.

"Hi Ron, you slept in?" She chipped in. "Looks like the big cleaning campaign is over if Mum let you stay in bed until noon."

"The room you'd been cleaning has been locked up by Sirius. He said he'd better examine it by himself before any further mischief happens," Ron explained, "and after two weeks of slave labour I'm allowed to have a sleep in, aren't I? It's time you finally show up. Mum didn't want to start lunch without you. "

At that moment, three large, heavily loaded plates of sandwiches floated onto the kitchen table. After everyone had snagged their first sandwich, Hermione grinned expectantly at Harry, "I think now that everyone's here, it's a good time to tell us what you've been doing all the time."

"I'm all ears," Ginny's mother sat down at the table and took a sandwich, too.

Ginny gave Harry a questioning look, and when he nodded in agreement, she started telling about the events of the past four days. She mentioned how she'd accidentally found the letter addressed to Sirius, and that Harry wanted to bring the letter to Sirius when the both of them suddenly were Portkeyed somewhere else. After a while, Harry took over the story and they took turns narrating. There was no noise in the kitchen except for the occasional sounds of chewing smacking. When they reached the point where Ginny got a fever, her mother insisted on checking her out immediately, which ended with her swallowing down another phial of fever potion. As a precaution, her mother said. The Horcruxes and the Black Family Journal, of course, were never mentioned in their tale. When Ginny finished the story, telling how they'd returned to the kitchen of Grimmauld Place using the figurine of a little black dog as a Portkey, everybody sitting at the table couldn't resist snickering.

"What was the letter about?" Hermione asked expectantly.

"It's a very personal letter, Hermione," Sirius explained in a determined voice, "and after reading the letter I think I need to sort some things out first. When I'm ready, I promise I'll tell you about the content of the letter, but it won't be today, and before you ask, not even tomorrow."

"Harry and Ginny know what's in the letter?" Hermione couldn't resist asking.

"Yes, of course. After all, they found the letter," Sirius admitted. "But please don't pester them with questions. What they can tell you, they will tell you. However, the letter is not their story to tell. So, please, don't ask them. At the moment I can tell you only so much, that my brother disappeared without a trace many years ago. If I had checked earlier into what happened to him, I'd probably have found the letter many years ago. To make up for that mistake, I need to be very careful now, and that'll take time; time we may not have now that Voldemort is back."

There was a moment of silence interrupted by Fred trying to relieve the tension, "Nurse Potter, I feel so hot." He theatrically touched his forehead, "I'm sure I have a fever. Only calf-packings will help. Nurse Potter, I'm in the urgent need of calf-packings."

Ginny watched with astonishment as her mother rose from her seat, completely unnoticed by the twins. With a mischievous grin on her face, she drew her wand.

"Aguamenti!"

A torrent of water broke over the twins and made them squeal aloud, "Mother!"

"Yikes," yelped Hermione, "that's cold!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry Hermione," Ginny's mother called apologetically. Leaning over the table, she threw a drying spell. "So that should be enough," she stated, eyeing her work critically.

"And what about us, Mum?" The twins asked in unison.

"Are you wizards or what?" Her mother replied impassively and turned to the stove, "Harry, Ginny, I remember a promise ..."

"Yeah, of course, we'll be right there to help you with dinner," Harry replied to Ginny's relief as she was just having a bite of her third helping.

"What promise?" Ron asked in surprise.

"Oh, we promised to help preparing dinner with your mother. Do you want to help, too?" Harry grinned at his friend.

"Oh, sorry, but I can't," Ron replied, giving Hermione a help-seeking gaze, he went on, "I promised to help Hermione with her homework."

"Liar," Ginny chuckled and turned to her mother. "What can we do for you, Mum?"

"What about peeling and cutting carrots and potatoes for forty people," her Mum offered.

"What? You can do it much quicker with magic!" Ginny exclaimed horrified.

"Ginny ... you promised ... "

"I know, I know," Ginny rolled her eyes, "mixed with the fresh blood from your daughter's fingers, the vegetable tastes as twice as good."

"I just knew there was a secret behind your mother's good cooking, Gin." Harry couldn't hold a giggle.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

After a few hours of kitchen work, Ginny felt exhausted. She was glad that Harry had insisted on not returning to Grimmauld Place without having a good night sleep.

After all the commotion all day, she could hardly imagine that only twenty-four hours before, she'd shared a bed with Harry in that strange cottage far in the north.

Surprisingly, the dinner preparations were a much more entertaining affair than she'd feared. To her astonishment, Harry had been a far greater help in the kitchen than she'd ever imagined. It was yet another thing she was hoping Harry would someday shed some light on.

The planned Order meeting was scheduled to begin at 7 o'clock this night. That's why her mother had prepared plates with dinner for the teenagers living on Grimmauld Place so that they could eat in their rooms.

Ginny had agreed with Harry to tell Hermione everything she knew about Horcruxes. Harry would do the same with Ron. He had insisted that it should happen unobserved by the adults, and the Order meeting was a perfect opportunity to do so. Sirius would inform them later about the meeting, so there was no need to eavesdrop. Harry also wanted to spend some time with Ron, and Ginny was fine with it. After all, Ron was his best friend and she was just...what? Well, she was pretty sure that Harry regarded her as a friend, and for the moment she was happy with that.

So, Ginny was now standing in front of her room, holding her dinner plate in her left hand, her goblet of pumpkin juice in her right hand, and opened the door to her room with her right elbow. She'd just set her plate on the small table by the window and sat down when Hermione entered the room.

Hermione grinned at her with a knowing smile. "Spill the beans, Weasley. What is it with you and Harry?" She placed her dinner on the table and took a seat in the chair across from Ginny.

Ginny looked at her friend in amazement. "What about us? We had some exciting days, we already told you about it."

"Exciting days you call it? Alone with Harry in a one-bed cottage? I was surprised your mother didn't say anything about that. And Harry made calf-wrappings for you. Come on, tell me. When did he kiss you the first time?"

Ginny almost choked her pumpkin juice, "Kissed? Hermione, what are you talking about? "

"The way you two look at each other, there's something there, Ginny. I just know it. "Hermione grinned.

"There's nothing there," Ginny shook her head vehemently, "To be honest, we had a few nice days. We talked a lot. That's it."

"What did you talk about?" Hermione was almost bursting with curiosity.

"About all sorts of things. When I woke up from a nightmare one night, Harry told me about his nightmares to calm me down," Ginny admitted guardedly.

"Harry never talks about his nightmares, Ginny. You should know that." Hermione looked at her, slightly confused.

"Have you ever told Harry what you're dreaming about, Hermione?" Ginny gave her a challenging look.

"No never. Why should I do such a thing?" Hermione asked, astonished.

"Sometimes you only get something if you give something," Ginny carried on.

Hermione looked at her in amazement. "You think Harry talked to you about his nightmares because you talked to him about your own nightmares?"

"Yes, but I think it's not about the nightmares, it's about trust. I trusted him with my nightmares, and I think this helped him to talk about his own." Ginny smiled at Hermione when she went on, "and sometimes it helps if you'd just listen instead of asking too many questions. You should give it a try, Hermione." Ginny chuckled. "Don't get me wrong, I like you the way you are," she added, "but you asked me why Harry told me about his nightmares, and that's the reason. At least I think so."

"And you're really sure nothing happened between the two of you?"

"We promised to trust each other and that there'll be no secrets when it comes to certain things," Ginny admitted.

"Ah, there it is. You two are keeping secrets. I take it, I don't need to ask about it because you won't tell me," Hermione grinned knowingly.

"That's right," Ginny replied, giggling when she saw Hermione's disappointed face. "You don't have to ask because I'll tell you anyway, just like Harry is going to tell Ron about it tonight, that is, if Ron actually listens."

Hermione looked at Ginny, baffled. "You split us up. Now I'm really curious what you're going to tell me."

"No, Hermione," Ginny sniggered. "Admit it. You're not curious, you're nosy."

Hermione snorted, "Okay, Ginny. I'm nosy. And now just tell me…what's your secret? Did you find a treasure on the island?"

"No, there's no treasure involved, not even a small one," Ginny shook her head, "I'll tell you if you promise never to talk about it to anyone. Anyone, but Sirius and Dumbledore. Moreover, please promise me that you'll watch out for Ron, so he won't ever blabber about it. Sometimes, he has a weird way when he's upset."

"Please tell me, Ginny. I promise to keep it a secret." Hermione said in a serious voice.

Ginny took a deep breath and looked thoughtfully at Hermione. "Okay, Hermione," she began, "where do we start?" She looked Hermione in the eye. "Do you know what a Horcrux is?"

In the next half hour, Ginny told Hermione everything she'd learned about Horcruxes in the past few days. As agreed with Sirius, she didn't mention the Black Family Journal and what information they've found in it.

"There's quite a bunch of books on Soul Magic in that cottage. I think Sirius will soon take a closer look at them, maybe he'll even ask you for help. Please do me a favour, Hermione. Please, do not search the library at Hogwarts for books on the subject. We don't want anyone to suspect that we ever heard the word Horcrux. Apart from the fact that you probably won't find any books on the subject in the public section of the library anyway."

Silently, Hermione gazed at Ginny for a long time. Ginny was relieved that she'd finally talked to Hermione about the topic. It still felt a bit strange to know something before Hermione heard about it.

"Thanks, Ginny, and I wish you both good luck," Hermione grabbed Ginny's hand and squeezed it, a pensive smile on her face.

"What do you mean?" Ginny gave her friend an uncomprehending gaze.

"You're probably right that I'm not always a good listener, but one thing I know for sure. Horcruxes aren't the only things Harry is currently thinking about."


	2. Chapter 2: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

**Still Wednesday, August 9th, 1995**

Harry and Ron had picked up their plates with roasted chicken, potatoes and steamed carrots in the kitchen. They sat silently at the small table in their room and devoted themselves to their food. Harry wanted to tell Ron about the Horcruxes but he wasn't sure how to start, so he waited for a chance to bring the topic up.

He got the impression that Ron had something on his mind as well. The way he silently shovelled his food, sending Harry short glances out of the corner of his eye, made it obvious.

Harry was about to break the silence when Ron looked up, "Harry?"

"Ron?" He returned his friend's gaze.

"Tell me, how come that I've got the impression that you and my sister were hiding something when you told us about your time on the island."

"What?" Harry asked, taken aback.

Ron raised an eyebrow. "I want to know what happened on the bloody island."

"Oh." Harry stared at Ron, wondering if he should be worried that even Ron had noticed that they hadn't told them everything? Maybe Hermione had ordered Ron to hear him out? On the other hand, he wanted to tell Ron what they knew about the Horcruxes anyway, so it didn't matter if he was suspicious.

"Well," Harry started, "there is something we wanted to tell you. Ginny is probably telling Hermione about the same things right now."

"Ha, I knew there was something wrong with you," Ron replied, slightly annoyed.

"What do you mean with wrong with me?" Harry asked, visibly perplexed by his friend's attitude. "I've already told you that there're things we need to talk to you about. But first, you must promise not to tell anyone else. It must be kept an absolute secret."

"You don't want us to tell Mum about it," Ron said bewildered. "But why?"

"Do you promise to keep it a secret, or not?" Harry asked, matching his friend's annoyance.

"Okay, okay, mate. Of course, I'll keep it a secret," Ron replied. "Although I'm not sure if I like it if it concerns my sister."

"Your sister?" Harry looked at his friend in surprise. "What about your sister?"

"Just wait a minute." Ron gestured towards his plate. "I'll just head down to the kitchen to fetch a second helping, then you can tell me everything about your little secret."

With that, Ron grabbed his plate and made his way down to the kitchen, leaving a suddenly very puzzled Harry behind.

Shaking his head, Harry was pondering Ron's weird behaviour. He was relieved when he heard Ron's footsteps on the stairs a few minutes later, announcing his friends return. Carrying a fully loaded plate in one hand and two bottles of Butterbeer in the other, Ron slipped through the door.

"I tell you, it was a pretty good idea to fetch something to eat now," Ron rattled on. "The kitchen is packed with lots of people, mostly people I don't even know, and the way they're tucking in, there'll be nothing left when they're gone tonight."

He sat down at the table and handed Harry a bottle of Butterbeer. "Here you are, mate, and now you're going to tell me about the secrets of yours."

"Okay." Harry cleared his throat to collect his thoughts. "Did you ever hear the term Horcrux?"

"Hor-what?" Ron asked in surprise. "I have no idea what it is. And what did you do to my sister with those hortuxes, Potter? I hope you didn't take advantage of her!"

Harry almost choked his Butterbeer. "Ron, shut up now and listen, or I'll go to bed."

"Oh, forget I said anything. Just keep on talking," Ron muttered, turning his attention back to his plate.

For the next half hour, Harry told Ron everything he knew about Horcruxes, and that they were pretty sure Voldemort had created a couple of those items. Harry insisted on using the name Voldemort, though Ron had repeatedly asked him to call him You-Know-Who, as all wizards are supposed to do.

At the end of the conversation, Ron needed a few minutes to process everything he'd heard. Visibly moved, he cursed, "Bastard. It's good Sirius is going to tell Dumbledore about it. After all, he's the only one who can defeat You-Know-Who."

"Yeah, he'll talk to Dumbledore tonight." Harry nodded.

Ron gave Harry a searching look. "Your tale about the Horcruxes is all well and good, but actually, I wanted to know something completely different from you."

"And what did you want to know?" Harry replied with interest.

"What is it with you and my little sister?" Ron gave him a stern look.

"What's biting you? I've no clue what you're talking about." Harry stared back in confusion.

"Harry, I know I'm as thick as a brick, but if _even I_ notice something, then there must be something. She's been hanging around you all day. You even helped her doing her chores in the kitchen."

"We wanted to show Sirius what we found on the island of his brother," Harry explained patiently, "and so that your mother would let Ginny come to Sirius with me, I promised to help her in the kitchen. What exactly is your problem?"

"I already told you." Ron shrugged.

Harry rolled his eyes. After a moment of watching Ron defeating his dinner, he went on, "We had a lot of time to talk and listen in the past few days, and we talked and listened quite a lot." Harry looked Ron straight in the eye. "To be honest, it was great to have someone to talk to."

"Oh, then you're sure happy that you're back, so you can talk to me again." Ron grinned at Harry.

"Ron, believe me, there are things you don't want to talk about." Harry grinned back.

"We can talk about everything, Harry. I'm your best mate," Ron replied unperturbedly.

"Do you want to talk with me about nightmares?" Harry asked skeptically.

"You two talked about nightmares?" Ron gave him a disbelieving look. "You never talk about your nightmares, Harry. But of course, if you want, you can talk to me about that stuff any time you want."

"Ron, you can't even say Voldemort's name, and you wince every time I say his name. Of course, we're best friends, but do you really think you could talk to me about my nightmares?"

A mischievous smile crossed Harry's face. "And don't forget that you must tell me about your dreams as well, especially about the dreams you're moaning Fleur's and Hermione's names."

"Hermione?" Ron blushed. "Why should I dream of Hermione?"

"That's interesting." Harry grinned. "Does it mean you're awake when you're groaning her name at night?"

"Hey, listen, Harry," Ron replied a bit tattered. "A man sometimes needs his privacy."

"Ah, finally!" Harry grinned. "That's exactly what I mean, Ron. So, let's talk about Quidditch, or why Snape is such a git. After all, that's what best friends do."

"But wait." Ron hesitated. "You said Ginny has nightmares. She hasn't had any nightmares for more than a year."

"You seem to be quite sure," Harry chuckled.

"What does she dream about in her nightmares?" Ron demanded to know.

"You'd better ask her yourself if you dare," Harry snorted amused. " But do me a favour, Ron. Don't ask her when I'm around."

"What do you mean," Ron asked dumbfounded.

"On the other hand," Harry grinned impishly, "why should I miss all the fun. Let me know when you're going to ask her. It'll certainly be fun." He got up, scanning the room for a fresh towel. "I'm off to take a shower and then I'll go to bed. It's been a long day. In the morning I was still on the island while you slept in until lunch."

"Okay, mate," Ron nodded understandingly. "I'll head to the drawing room, maybe I can find someone who wants to play a game of chess with me."

"G'night, Ron."

"G'night, Harry."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Thursday, August 10th, 1995**

When Harry woke up the next morning, he wasn't sure if the August rain lashing against the window had wakened him, or Ron's snoring. In the end, it didn't matter. He knew he wouldn't go back to sleep. Mechanically, he reached for his glasses, lying on the nightstand. He pushed them on his nose and ventured a look at his wristwatch. It was half past six in the morning. With any luck, there was already breakfast. Maybe Ginny was even up. Ginny. Confused, he shook his head. How did he come up with Ginny now? He pushed his legs over the edge of the bed and trudged to his wardrobe in search of fresh clothes for the day.

Ten minutes, a hot shower and a tooth brushing later, he headed down the stairs to the kitchen.

To his astonishment, Sirius already sat at the kitchen table, a pot of tea and a cup in front of him. He gave Harry a big grin. "Hey Kiddo, did you sleep well? Take a cup out of the cupboard, tea is ready, but there's still no breakfast."

"I'll fix us some breakfast, Sirius," Harry suggested. "What do you want?"

"Where did you learn to cook, Harry?" Sirius raised an eyebrow in astonishment.

"Aunt Petunia taught me, I've always been allowed to cook for the whole family ever since I was six," Harry explained. "It was about the only way to be sure of getting anything to eat at all."

"Damn Muggles," Sirius swore.

"It's okay. I'm here now." Harry tried to calm his godfather. "Do you want fried eggs, bacon, and baked beans with toast. Is it okay for you? I can also add a few mushrooms."

"Thank you, Harry. But you don't have to do that."

"I enjoy making breakfast, and I'm hungry, too. So why not?" Harry turned to the stove and started preparing breakfast.

"Sirius?" Harry hesitantly asked after a while, without taking his eyes off the stove.

"Yeah, that's me," Sirius sniggered.

"I need to ask you something," Harry continued, unimpressed by Sirius' joke.

"What's got your knickers in a twist?"

Harry placed two plates loaded with fried eggs, baked beans and fried bacon on the table and sat down opposite of Sirius. Concentrating on his fried eggs, he began hesitantly, "Tomorrow is Ginny's birthday, and I've no clue what I could give her."

Sirius raised his eye brow. "Why, do you think she's expecting a birthday present from you?"

"That's not what it is about." Harry shook his head. "I want to give her something for her birthday."

"Well, then I need to know what's up with the two of you. Did something happen on the island that I should know about?" Sirius looked thoughtfully at his godson.

"No, it's not what you think, we are ... friends, that's all, we talked a lot and ... she's ... I don't know," Harry stammered. "I want to give her something for her birthday, something useful. But where can I get something when I need it tomorrow?"

"Hmm, let me think about it." Sirius frowned thoughtfully. "Something useful, you said. How about a mirror?"

"A mirror?" Harry asked flabbergasted. "I'm pretty sure she already has a mirror."

"No, that's not what I meant," Sirius rectified his answer. "I thought of a special mirror. A mirror you can use to talk to each other, a communication mirror."

"I didn't know there was any such thing. Where should I get such a mirror so quickly?"

"I have two of those mirrors, the one once belonged to your father and the other one to me. We used the mirrors to talk to each other when we were in detention," Sirius said with a pensive gaze.

"I like the idea," Harry replied thoughtfully. "We have different classes. If we had such mirrors, I could call her when we found something new about the Horcruxes."

"Well, I'll look for the mirrors after breakfast. They're probably still in my old school trunk. With some luck I even still have the matching wooden boxes. But I won't help you with the wrapping. You have to wrap them nicely all by yourself."

"That's no problem, I can do it," Harry answered, relieved that the problem was solved. He really liked the idea of having a means to communicate with Ginny.

"What can you do?" Came a voice from the direction of the door.

Startled, Harry turned around, just in time to see Ginny entering the kitchen with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Good morning you two."

"Good morning, Ginny," Harry replied, returning her smile. "What I can do? I'm about to whip up some breakfast. What do you want? Eggs, bacon, and beans? If you want cereals or scones, I'll have to look for the ingredients. It might take a minute."

"Eggs, bacon and some toast sound like a good idea," Ginny replied. "Where is Mum?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if your mother is running a bit late today," Sirius interjected. "The Order meeting last night took quite a while, until the wee hours of the morning, actually."

"Oh, what was it about?" Harry gave Sirius an inquiring look. "Did you talk to Dumbledore?" The thought of a birthday present for Ginny obviously had pushed Sirius's conversation with Dumbledore out of Harry's mind.

"I did," Sirius replied. "It was very ... let's say interesting. But we'll talk about it later, not here in the kitchen, anyway. Let's meet in my room? In half an hour?"

The two teenagers had barely nodded their agreement when they heard footsteps in the stairwell. When they turned to the kitchen door, they were facing an astonished Molly Weasley. "How come you're so up so early?"

"Good morning to you too, Mum," giggled Ginny. "Good morning, Dad," she added when Mr Weasley made his way over to his chair at the kitchen table, greeting everyone present.

"Good Morning, Mr Weasley," Harry replied. "I'm glad to see you again." Indeed, he'd last seen Ginny's father at King's Cross Station when they'd arrived with the Hogwarts Express.

"Harry, I'm glad to see you, too. I wanted to talk to you about your hearing. As you surely know, the hearing will take place on Saturday at 9 o'clock. I'll take you to the Ministry when I get to work, which will be at seven o'clock sharp. I'll pick you up here in the kitchen. Ok?"

"All right, Mr Weasley."

"Don't worry, Harry," Mr Weasley tried to cheer him up. "Everything will be fine. Professor Dumbledore will be there too. He'll take care of your business. "

The news that Dumbledore would be present at the hearing soothed Harry, indeed.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Half an hour later, Harry and Ginny met in front of her room to head up to see Sirius together. He followed Ginny up in the stairwell.

A silly grin spread over Harry's face as he stared at Ginny's bum floating up the stairs at exactly his eye level. He blushed slightly when he realized what he was doing. Almost missing a step, he felt his unmistakable reaction to Ginny's anatomy.

Ginny turned around, her lips curved into a grin that made his heart stop. "Hey, watch your step, Harry." Her grin disappeared as she looked at him attentively. "What's wrong with you?"

"Oh, nothing," Harry assured her quickly, muttering, "I...um, distracted for a moment."

Ginny looked at him. "Distracted?" When a knowing smirk crossed her face, she suggested, "Maybe you should walk ahead next time."

"Oh, no," Harry muttered. "It's okay." He nodded his head up the stairs. "Go on, Sirius is waiting for us."

Shaking her head in amusement, Ginny turned and headed up the rest of the stairs. When they reached the landing, Harry caught up with her and they walked side by side to Sirius's room and knocked at the door. Sirius opened the door and let them in.

The room had changed a lot compared to the previous day. The dirty laundry was gone, the bed was made, and the table cleared.

"Sit down." Sirius pointed to the two chairs at the desk and sat down in the armchair next to the bookshelf.

"I talked to Dumbledore about your little excursion and what you two found out about Horcruxes," Sirius started summarizing his meeting with Dumbledore. "He was quite interested in the information you found about Horcruxes. Oddly enough, he wasn't interested in talking to you directly, Harry. He even suggested hiding everything we'll find out in the future from you. He's afraid that your scar is a kind of a connection to Voldemort, and he's worried Voldemort might spy on us using this link."

"What does he mean…a connection?" Harry asked horrified.

"I don't know, he was a bit tight-lipped about it. Maybe he has a point here, but to be honest, Harry, I don't care. Your safety is the most important thing to me, and that means that you need to know what is happening around you. Of course, it doesn't mean we shouldn't be careful. We need to take a possible connection between you and Voldemort into consideration. But more on that later. It was quite a surprise for Dumbledore that I knew about Horcruxes, and he was quite interested in the information we have. However, I had the impression that he already knew most of it. It was quite apparent to me that Dumbledore already suspected for some time that Voldemort created Horcruxes. I can't say exactly where the suspicion comes from, but Dumbledore seemed to be far more concerned that I knew what a Horcrux is than the fact that Voldemort created Horcruxes.

"When I asked Dumbledore if he thought the diary was a Horcrux, he gave me a strange gaze. I had the feeling that the idea that the diary was a Horcrux bothered him less than the question how I came up with that idea. As a precaution, I didn't mention that the idea about the diary Horcrux came from the two of you. I had the feeling Dumbledore knew that the diary was a Horcrux, the moment he saw it for the first time. When I asked him about it, he confirmed it.

"However, Dumbledore became really tight-lipped when I asked him why Voldemort has been after you all this time, and why he was after James and Lily in the first place. He vaguely mentioned that he'd received the clue that Voldemort wanted to punish the Potters and the Longbottom's for opposing him. I'm quite sure he didn't tell the whole truth here.

"That was the moment I was glad I'd decided not to mention the Family Journal, and especially not the possibility to merge the soul pieces. Since we don't know why Voldemort is stalking you, we need ways to protect you, Harry. The knowledge about merging soul pieces, and how to destroy them, could be the key knowledge for your survival. I don't want to limit your protection by relying on other people. As soon as I get the impression Dumbledore is honest with us, I will tell him everything we know. However, as long as I've the feeling he's keeping secrets from us, we'll take our own precautions. Once you two have returned to Hogwarts, I'll travel to this island for a few days to study the books on soul magic."

"Sirius, do you think we should ask anyone else for help?" Ginny chipped in with a thoughtful gaze. "Either with the soul merging ritual or in general, with the research of these soul magic books? I can ask my brother Bill. He's a curse breaker, and he knows a lot about such things."

"Sounds like a good idea." Sirius nodded his head in agreement. "I could ask him after the next Order meeting to stay a few minutes longer, so I could talk to him."

"Sirius, how well do you know Bill?" Ginny asked hesitantly.

"Only by sight, and from saying Hello," Sirius admitted with a sad smile. "Most Order members don't talk much to me. They don't trust a wanted murderer."

"Okay, then I'll talk to Bill first," Ginny said in a determined voice. "Then you're welcome to take over. He'll trust you, Sirius."

"Okay, one last thing for now," Harry added. "We should talk to Kreacher. Your brother mentioned Kreacher in his letter. Maybe Kreacher knows what happened to your brother. Maybe he even knows what happened to the Horcrux your brother wanted to destroy."

"I don't like the idea at all, I don't trust that house-elf." Sirius raised his hand to prevent Harry from interrupting him. "But I think you're right."

"So, let's get it over with." Harry looked about, seeking for consent. "Why don't we call Kreacher right away?

"Yeah, why not." Sirius nodded in agreement, shouting, "Kreacher!"

The aged house-elf appeared out of nowhere with a pop. "You called Kreacher, treacherous son. Oh, how my poor mistress hates that I must serve him."

"Kreacher, can you tell me what my brother Regulus did before he disappeared?" Sirius asked his house-elf, stony-faced.

"Oh. The brave Master Regulus. He was a nice wizard, always treated poor Kreacher well," the elf muttered under his breathe.

"Here I have a letter from Regulus in which he tells me that you helped him to do something very important. He tells me that, if anything happens to him, that I should talk to you. He asked me to continue what he started. But I need your help to do that. That's why you need to tell me what Regulus did, Kreacher."

"Master Sirius would help Kreacher to do what Master Regulus told him to do? Bad Kreacher, weak Kreacher, he failed his Master Regulus."

"What did Regulus want you to do for him, Kreacher?"

"Master Regulus asked Kreacher to destroy the evil he has stolen from the Dark Lord. Poor Master Regulus died in this evil, evil cave, and the weak Kreacher couldn't fulfil his last wish."

"What was Regulus' last wish, Kreacher. It's very important, " Sirius said forcefully.

"Kreacher was supposed to destroy that evil something, but he just couldn't do it."

"Where is this evil something, Kreacher?" Sirius bent down to look the elf in the eye.

"Kreacher still has the evil," the house-elf muttered sheepishly.

"Can you bring it to me, Kreacher? We can destroy it together." Sirius pushed further.

"Master Sirius would help Kreacher to destroy the evil for Master Regulus?" The house-elf looked flabbergasted.

"We'll try to help," Sirius promised.

Kreacher disappeared with a pop sound, just to reappear a few seconds later, holding a silver locket in his trembling hands. "Here's the evil Master Regulus died for."

"Thank you, Kreacher. We will try to find a way to destroy it. I promise," Harry declared with a resolute face.

"Kreacher? Do you know the cottage on the small island where Regulus used to live sometimes?" Ginny asked the house-elf.

"Oh yes. Kreacher knows the island and the little house. When Master Regulus died, he didn't find the way back there."

"Thank you, Kreacher. If we need your help to destroy the evil, we will call you," Harry promised.

"Kreacher would be glad to be of help. Kreacher is happy when he is being called." With a pop, the old house-elf was gone again.

"Well, that wasn't so hard, Sirius, was it?" Harry grinned at his godfather. "Just give it a try and be nice to him, and you'll see, one day, Kreacher will love you."

"What are we going to do with the locket now?" Sirius asked thoughtfully, completely ignoring Harry's teasing. "If the text in the family journal is correct, we could use it to summon the other Horcruxes."

"But we'd have to be sure that the locket is really a Horcrux," Ginny interjected. "It's just another reason to ask my brother for help. He could easily find out if it's really a Horcrux."

"I'll ask him for help as soon as I see him," Sirius agreed. "I'll hide the locket in Buckbeak's room, and I'll try to bring it to the island as soon as possible, so no one can find it. "

"Buckbeak's here?" Harry called out in surprise.

"Of course, he lives in my mother's room."

"Gin, let's visit him!" Exclaimed Harry excitedly.

"I'd love to," she agreed, "if you're going to introduce me to him."

The two excited teens left a speechless Sirius Black alone in his room.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Friday, August 11th, 1995**

Harry had thought long and hard what would be the best time to give Ginny her birthday present. He'd snuck into Sirius's room the night before to fetch the mirrors. The wrapping of the gift was more difficult than he'd thought. Where was he supposed to find wrapping paper in that house? At Sirius' advice, he had finally searched the sideboard in the library and actually found some sheets of paper large enough to wrap the wooden box with the mirror in it. The paper sheets were black, not necessarily the colour Harry had been looking for, but in the end, he had no choice. If he'd asked Hermione if she'd had wrapping paper it would only raise questions he didn't want to answer right now. In the end, the black wrapping paper looked even better than Harry had expected.

But when should he hand over the gift to Ginny? Harry would prefer if, for the time being, no one would know about the mirrors. After all, he had only two mirrors, and Ron would probably be angry that he hadn't given the mirror to him because he was his best friend ... and Hermione ... she would probably ask him many questions he wasn't sure he knew the answers to.

No, the mirror was meant to be a personal gift.

He would give Ginny the mirror when no one else was around, and it needed to be in the morning. He didn't want Ginny to think he'd forgotten her birthday. After much deliberation, he decided to take his chance when Hermione was in the kitchen having breakfast. Usually, she was the first of the girls, it would fit perfectly. As a precaution, Harry had wrapped a couple of chocolate frogs he would give Ginny in the kitchen. This way, no one would know about their mirrors.

So, here he stood in front of the door to Ginny's room. Hermione's footsteps had just faded away on the first floor. He hesitated for a moment. What if she was still asleep...or getting dressed. On the other hand...he had seen her in bed a few days ago, in the cottage on the island. He'd even been in bed with her. He blushed slightly at the thought. Luckily, nobody else knew about it. He took a deep breath, straightened his shoulders, and knocked softly on the door.

Nothing happened.

He knocked a second time, this time a bit louder.

"Yeah? What is it?" he heard a dozy voice.

Opening the door carefully, he peered through the crack of the door. Facing the wall, Ginny was still lying in her bed, the blanket pulled up to her ears. Harry was wondering if he should better retreat and wait for a better opportunity when Ginny slowly turned around.

She blinked at him with sleepy eyes.

"Oh, hi Harry, what are you doing here?" She smiled sheepishly at him.

"I...Happy Birthday, Ginny," Harry stammered.

"Birthday? ... Oh, you remembered?" She straightened up and tapped the mattress next to her. "Come, sit down."

"I have something for you," Harry smiled shyly. "It's just a silly something. Sirius helped me."

"That wouldn't have been necessary," Ginny mumbled, blushing slightly as Harry handed her the black box.

"Sirius even gave me the Black family wrapping paper, all in black," Harry tried to joke and was grateful when Ginny smiled.

"What is it?" Ginny asked shyly as she removed the wrapping and held a small mahogany box in her hand.

"Just open it," chuckled Harry, as excited as Ginny.

Ginny opened the lid of the box. "Oh, a mirror," Ginny said, visibly surprised, "so I can look around the corners when I sneak around Hogwarts at night," she chuckled.

"The mirror can do even more," Harry smiled at her. "Take your wand. Don't worry, there's no magic needed. The magic is in the mirror, it is enchanted. You just need to take your wand and tap the mirror, saying 'Harry'."

Ginny did as Harry said. There was a faint hum and Harry revealed another wooden box, hidden in his other hand. He opened the lid, took out the slightly vibrating mirror and tapped it with his wand.

"Oh," Ginny exclaimed, when suddenly Harry's reflection appeared in her mirror. "That's ... that's fantastic," she said, dumbfounded.

"Whenever you have bad dreams again, you just call me," Harry explained. "Or if you don't know the right answers in your homework."

"Oh, so you can ask Hermione for the right answers?" Ginny giggled mischievously. "Who else can I call with the mirror?"

"For the moment, it's only me. Sirius had two mirrors only. I have the other one," Harry explained regretfully. "We could ask Sirius for instructions how to make such mirrors, so we can link more mirrors to ours."

"We should ask Sirius," Ginny agreed. "But for now, it would be nice if only the two of us have a mirror. It's a nice little secret. But please don't tell Ron about it. He would always ask you to borrow your mirror to ask me what I'm doing right now," Ginny giggled. "Thank you, Harry. I really like your present. Are you going to say Goodnight to me every night now?"

"As long as I don't have to sing you a lullaby, I might consider it." Harry grinned at her. "But I'd better go for breakfast now. Hermione will be back soon."

"Okay, I'll see you in the kitchen then. I'd better get up now, too."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

When Harry entered the kitchen, Mrs Weasley was already busy bringing breakfast to the table. Sirius, Hermione, and oddly enough, the twins were already sitting in their usual places at the kitchen table. Sipping her cup of tea, Hermione already had an empty bowl of porridge in front of her.

"Good morning, everyone." Harry smiled cheerfully, only to get a many-voiced murmur in response, as everyone was busy filling their plates.

Only Hermione gave him a cheerful smile. "Good morning, Harry."

Harry placed the chocolate frogs wrapped in the black paper on Ginny's usual seat next to Hermione and sat down on the chair next to it.

Hermione looked up in surprise, "Whom is this for?"

"It's for Ginny," he said, pouring himself a cup of tea. "Ginny's having her birthday today," he added, just as Mrs Weasley placed a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of him.

"Oh, right," Mrs Weasley cried out, visibly startled, "Ginny is having her birthday today. Merlin, I need to arrange a little party for her, and Arthur has to get her a birthday present."

Sirius nodded pleased to Harry, raised his thumb and mouthed silently. "Well done!"

Harry was astonished. He was used to the Dursleys forgetting his birthday. However, he'd never thought the Weasleys could forget the birthday of one of their children. At least they'd noticed their mistake in time and were willing to correct it.

Harry was about to devour his breakfast when noises in the stairwell announced the next starving Weasley in search of something to eat. With a big smile on her face, Ginny entered the kitchen and marched to her seat at the kitchen table. "Good morning."

Just before she could sit down, Ginny was captured by her mother in a bone-crushing hug. "Happy Birthday, Ginny," she smiled at her daughter. "Of course, you can choose your favourite dishes for dinner today. Just tell me what you want. I'm so sorry, but birthday guests are not allowed this year, thanks to the restricted access to this house and everything."

"Thank you, Mum," Ginny replied with a grateful smile. "You know what I like to eat. If I could get a delicious chocolate ice cream sundae, I'd be happy."

"Of course, you can have a chocolate ice cream sundae, my dear." Mrs Weasley beamed at her daughter.

After those present had congratulated Ginny for her birthday with a lot of noise and a lot of giggling, she finally sat down in her chair at the kitchen table. With a careful look, she eyed the black box in front of her.

Recognizing the black wrapping, she opened the package, giving Harry an astonished look. Harry smiled at her, "Happy Birthday, Ginny. I've heard that you're collecting the chocolate frogs trading cards. Oh, and if you don't like the chocolate, you can give it back to me." He grinned cheekily at Ginny.

"Oh, Potter. What are you dreaming of at night?" She smiled at him. "Thanks, if you are nice to me, you can have a bite."

Suddenly, Ginny began to search the wrapping paper.

"What are you looking for?" Harry asked intrigued.

"Oh," Ginny smirked. "I was hoping the noble donor would have added a singing birthday card, as an eternal reminder of the delicious gift."

"No, unfortunately not," Harry said in an apologetic voice. "But I know an expert for singing greeting cards. I could ask her if she'd show me how to make one."

"Advice from an expert can be expensive." Ginny gave him a cheeky look.

"Oh, I'll come up with something." Harry grinned back.

Unnoticed by the two of them, Hermione watched their exchange with growing interest and a mischievous smile.

"Good morning, what's all the ruckus about so early in the morning?" The voice sounded from the kitchen door as a sleepy Ron entered the kitchen. He sat down in the empty seat next to Hermione. "Mum, are there any eggs and bacon left? I'm starving." Ron looked about the table. "Oh, chocolate frogs." His eyes lit up.

"Don't you dare." Ginny gave her brother a challenging look.

"It's a birthday present, Ron." Hermione shot Ron a reproachful look.

"Birthday present? Who's having birthday?" Ron looked about in astonishment. "Oh, sorry, Ginny. Congratulations," he stuttered when he saw his sister's scowl.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Ginny's birthday dinner was almost over. Ginny's mother had outdone herself and made a delicious feast with nearly all of Ginny's favourite dishes.

"Watch out, the sundaes are coming," Mrs Weasley called out with a warning voice as she levitated a long row of goblets filled with a variety of different sorts of ice cream to the kitchen table.

Ginny smiled broadly at her extra-large chocolate ice cream sundae. She reached for her spoon and scraped a large piece of ice cream from the top of her sundae. "Hmmm, that's delicious." she beamed satisfied and began to devour the sundae. Taking this as a starting signal, everyone else began to devour their sundaes with much vigour.

"Harry." Mr Weasley glanced at Harry over the table. "I need to talk to you after dinner. Please wait a moment when you're done with your ice cream."

"Yeah, sure, Mr Weasley." Harry nodded in agreement.

A while later, the birthday guests one by one slowly stood up to adjourn to the drawing room to let the evening fade away with a few games of Exploding Snap. Ginny started collecting her birthday presents to take them to her room. Mrs Weasley flicked her wand casually at the sink and muttered a spell. The dishes slowly floated over to the sink and began to wash-up themselves.

As soon as Harry was alone in the kitchen with Ginny's parents, Mr Weasley began, "Harry, your hearing will take place tomorrow morning at 9, in the office of the Head of Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Amelia Bones.

"I'll take you to the Ministry tomorrow morning when I get to work. You can wait for the beginning of your hearing in my office. I'll show you the way to Mrs Bone's office. Please, be prepared to leave Grimmauld Place at 7 a.m. sharp. Try to have some breakfast before we're leaving, it will be a long day for you."

"Should I wear formal robes or my Hogwarts robes?" Harry asked.

"You're not expelled, Harry, so you should wear your Hogwarts robes. Dumbledore will be there, he'll be your official defender," Mr Weasley informed him. "Don't worry, everything will be fine."

"Thank you, Mr Weasley." Harry smiled at the older man. "I'll head up to the drawing room for a bit, and then I'll try to get to sleep early."

"That's a good idea, Harry." Mr Weasley smiled at him, nodding in agreement.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

After three games of Exploding Snap with the twins and Ginny, while Ron was playing chess with Hermione, Harry excused himself to go to bed. The twins still wanted to play a few more rounds of Exploding Snap and had persuaded Ron and Hermione to join the game. Ginny had already yawned several times during the game and informed the others that she'd call it a day soon. She'd headed to her room even before Harry left.

Harry had just changed into his sleeping clothes and crawled under the covers when he noticed a humming noise. It took a moment for him to remember his mirror. He quickly reached under his pillow and took out the wooden box with his mirror.

He tapped the slightly vibrating mirror with his wand just to find himself face to face with a grinning Ginny.

"Hi, Harry," she smiled at him. "I just wanted to wish you luck for your hearing."

"I'm sure I'll need it," Harry answered grinning.

"And thanks again for the nice gift." Ginny mirrored the grin. "It's a great way to say Good Night every night." Her eyes got a mischievous glint. "I take it the Good Nights are included in the gift."

"Oh, I'll try, but what if I can't call you because Ron is nagging me all night, or if you're gossiping all night with Hermione about only Merlin knows, and don't answer?" Harry asked teasingly.

"Oh, Potter, I never gossip." Ginny grinned mischievously. "Well, maybe sometimes." She giggled when Harry frowned disbelievingly.

Suddenly Harry couldn't suppress a yawn. He grinned wistfully. "Thanks for calling me, Ginny. As much as I'd like to talk to you all night, I think I'd better try to get some sleep now."

"Okay, Harry. Goodnight, and don't forget that it's your turn to call me tomorrow."

"Yeah, I'll try to remember you." Harry grinned cheekily. "Goodnight, Gin. Sleep well."

Giving her a wistful smile, Harry waited for Ginny to break the connection. He put the mirror back into the wooden box and hid it under his pillow. Yawning, he turned his back to the room and fell asleep within seconds, a happy smile on his lips.


	3. Chapter 3: Summer Madness

**Saturday, August 12th, 1995**

Ginny woke up hearing footsteps in the stairwell. She hadn't slept well last night. This time, though, it wasn't because of her nightmares. The restlessness and concern about Harry's hearing had kept her awake most of the night. Every time she woke up and glanced at her watch, only a few minutes had passed. This time, however, she noticed the daylight shimmering through the drawn curtains. A quick glance at her watch confirmed that it was already 6:45 a.m. Apparently, she'd slept for a few hours. She stood up swiftly and put on her bathrobe. Silently, she tiptoed to the door, careful not to wake Hermione, she slowly opened the door and slipped out of the room.

As she walked down the stairs, she heard voices from the kitchen. She entered the kitchen and looked around. Harry sat at the kitchen table, already dressed for his visit to the Ministry. He listlessly pushed the scrambled eggs and baked beans around his plate. Her father was sitting in his usual place at the kitchen table, throwing one last glance in the morning edition of the Daily Prophet, while her mother was busy with the stove.

Murmuring a "Good Morning", Ginny gave Harry an encouraging look. Her heart beat a bit faster when Harry managed to answer her with a crooked smile. She sat down at the table and looked at her hands for a moment to fight her restlessness and prevent the tears from filling her eyes.

Finally, she plucked up her courage and looked at Harry. "I wish you good luck today." There was nothing more to say.

Harry seemed to understand. Giving her a nervous grin, he murmured, "Thank you."

Placing a cup of tea in front of Ginny, her mother interrupted the scene, asking, "What do you want for breakfast, Ginny?"

"Actually, I'm not hungry, Mum," she replied, looking at her cup.

"You must eat something, Ginny," her mother intervened.

At that moment, her father rose from his seat, folded his newspaper and put it on the pile of old newspapers on the sideboard. "Okay, Harry, it's time to leave, are you done?"

"Yeah, I'm done," Harry sighed and got up.

He walked to the door and turned briefly, raising his hand in farewell. Murmuring, "See you later!", he hurried after her father.

Ginny looked thoughtfully at the plate her mother had placed in front of her. It would be a long day.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Ginny stared at the book lying in front of her on the reading table in the library. She'd chosen a random book from the bookshelf and had been staring at the same page for at least the last half hour without knowing what the book was about. She sighed and slammed the book frustrated.

Hermione, sitting on the sofa, absorbed in a book by herself, looked up. "The waiting is nerve-wracking, isn't it?" she said, giving Ginny a sympathetic look.

"Yeah," Ginny replied, glancing at her watch. "It's 9 o'clock, the hearing should begin just now. I hope it won't take long."

"Don't worry so much, Ginny. Professor Dumbledore is with Harry to represent his interests. Harry won't get into trouble," Hermione tried to soothe her.

"Harry never gets into trouble," Ginny replied nervously. "The trouble always gets to him."

Noises from the staircase interrupted their conversation. Ginny cocked her head and tried to identify the noises.

"It sounds like Bill has finally arrived," she said as she recognized her big brother's voice. Turning to the door, she muttered, "I'll be right back, I need to talk to him."

Quickly she scurried down the stairs and just saw her mother leading Bill into the kitchen. She followed them and waited patiently until her mother released her brother from a bone-breaking hug.

"Hey Bill," she beamed at him. "How are you?"

Bill turned around in surprise and smiled at her, "Hello Ginny, I'm fine, I hope you're doing well, too?"

Ginny flew into her brother's arms and hugged him. "As good as can be expected in a crowded house with a bunch of annoying brothers."

"Oh, and now you've got another annoying brother in your hair." Bill laughed.

"You're my favourite brother, so you're never annoying," Ginny replied, laughing, then whispering in Bill's ear, "I need to talk to you. Soon."

"That's nice to hear, Firefly." Bill grinned.

Ginny freed herself from Bill's embrace and looked him in the eyes. "Well, come to think of it again, you are very rarely annoying."

Bill winked at her. "Because I'm very rarely at home?"

"Exactly," Ginny replied with a chuckle.

"But that's about to change now." Bill smiled roguishly. "I'm back from Egypt, we'll see each other more often now."

"Oh bugger." Ginny rolled her eyes, but couldn't hide a delighted smile. "No, seriously, I'm glad you're back." She hugged her brother again, whispering in his ear, "You can find me in my room, the only place with a bit of privacy in the whole house."

Turning to the door, she called, "See you later, Bill."

She headed to her room, hoping that Bill would soon come to talk to her.

Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long until there was a knock at her door.

"Come in," she called, relieved that it was really Bill who slipped through the door.

"What is it?" he smiled encouragingly.

"You know that I was away for a few days?" she asked carefully, relieved when Bill nodded.

"You have to tell me all about it. What Mum told me sounded pretty adventurous," Bill said, smiling.

"Oh, I can do that, and yes, it was adventurous, but sadly the story has to wait," replied Ginny.

"Oh, then it must be something important." Bill looked at her expectantly.

"It is," Ginny confirmed. "We've brought some very important things with us that belong to Sirius. Some things are so important that it's better no one knows about it."

"And why are you telling me about it?" Bill asked cautiously.

"We think Sirius needs help looking through these things and understanding them, and we think a curse breaker is just the right person to help."

"Who is we, if I may ask?" Bill looked at her thoughtfully.

"Harry and me," Ginny replied guardedly.

"Harry and you?" Bill asked with interest. "Is there anything else I should know about?"

"Not that I know of," Ginny responded, fixing his gaze.

"Okay," Bill replied.

"I'll let you know as soon as there's something to tell," Ginny continued. "But all what matters now is that you need to talk to Sirius. He's going to ask you to stay a bit longer after the Order meeting this evening, and Bill, I think it's very important. Please, listen to him, you can trust Sirius. But please don't tell anyone else about it; not before you've heard what he has to say."

Bill looked at her thoughtfully for a long time before he nodded. "Okay, I'll talk to Sirius."

"Thanks, Bill," Ginny whispered, hugging her brother.

"I think I better head back to Mum in the kitchen," Bill said, "before she misses me and sends a search party."

"Yeah, you'd better," Ginny confirmed sniggering. "As I said, privacy doesn't exist in this house. See you later."

After Bill left her room, Ginny sighed and slowly made her way back to the library.

She was glad that Bill had agreed to help Sirius, or at least to hear what it was all about it. She crept back into her chair at the reading table, looking listlessly at the book she'd tried to read earlier.

She looked at her watch. It wasn't 10 o'clock yet. She was wondering what Harry was doing right now.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

"Lunch is ready." Ginny heard her mother's voice in the stairwell.

"We're coming," she called in the direction of the door, and gave Hermione a questioning look, "Are you coming?" Seeing Hermione nodding and getting up from the sofa, Ginny made her way towards the kitchen in the hope that lunch would bring some distraction.

When she entered the kitchen, her mother had already placed a large plate of prawn and tuna sandwiches on the table next to a carafe of chilled pumpkin juice. The girls took plates and glasses from the cupboard and arranged them on the table.

When they heard the noises of the boys in the stairwell, they sat down on their chairs and poured pumpkin juice into their glasses. Ron, closely followed by Fred and George, entered the kitchen and descended on the sandwiches like a pack of hyenas.

When her mother put a bowl of fruit on the table, Ginny grabbed one of the apples and bit listlessly into it. She was just too worried to be hungry.

Hermione had snagged a tuna sandwich before the boys had cleared the plate. She shook her head in disbelief at the tumult the boys were having at lunch. When she finished her sandwich, she took a few sips of pumpkin juice from her glass and asked Ginny's mother, "Mrs Weasley, is there any news from Harry?"

Ginny was glad Hermione had asked that question and was curious about her mother's answer. Unfortunately, she shook her head. "No, unfortunately not, but Harry should be back soon, after all, he's been away for hours now."

She had just turned her attention back to the dinner preparations when someone noisily knocked at the front door. The portrait of Sirius' mother, Walburga Black, immediately started screaming and cursing all the unworthy inhabitants of Grimmauld Place.

"Who could that be?" Ginny asked in surprise.

"There's only one way to find out," her mother replied, making her way to the front door. As she passed by the portrait of the former landlady, she closed the curtains, making the noise immediately more bearable.

Ginny followed her mother into the stairwell and watched as she carefully opened the door a crack.

"Who is it?" Hermione asked, standing in the kitchen door next to Ginny.

"Alastor, Nymphadora, I'm glad to see you," Mrs Weasley greeted the newcomers. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"We were just escorting this young man home," grumbled the strange-looking man in Auror robes Ginny suspected was the real Mad-Eye Moody and pushed Harry through the door. "Albus insisted that we take him home safely."

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to cause you so much trouble," Harry apologized.

"Nonsense, Harry, it was nice to meet you." A pink haired girl in Auror robes smiled at Harry. "We're off again, duty's calling." She waved at them and turned to leave.

Harry waved goodbye to his escorts and trudged slowly up the stairs. When he reached the kitchen door, he looked at the two girls, took a deep breath and said softly, "Hey, I'm back."

"Harry, how did it go?" Hermione blurted out.

"Give him some rest, girls," Ginny's mother chided them.

Harry gave her a grateful look and strode slowly into the kitchen, where the Weasley boys had just finished the last sandwich. He sat down in his chair and smiled relieved. "In the end, everything was fine."

When Ginny heard the news and the cheers of her brothers, she smiled in relief and sat down next to Harry. "Are you hungry?" she asked.

"I'm starving," Harry admitted.

"Tell us, how did it go?" Hermione urged him.

Harry grabbed a roast beef sandwich from the new plate her mother had just placed on the table and took a bite. Ginny noticed how her hunger returned and grabbed a sandwich, too.

After Harry had taken a few bites from his sandwich, he chased it down with some pumpkin juice and looked amused into the expectant faces around him.

"As you know, your dad took me to his office this morning. I was lucky that we arrived so early. We were barely in his office when a colleague of your dad brought word that the location and time of my hearing have been changed.

"It wasn't just a hearing in the office of Madam Bones. Fudge insisted that the hearing has to take place in front of the entire Wizengamot…an hour earlier that it had been scheduled previously. We were lucky that we've been in the Ministry so early, so I was only five minutes late.

"Percy was there too, he was the secretary of the hearing, and an ugly woman, who looked like a toad. That hag, absolutely wanted me to be sentenced. Luckily, Dumbledore showed up just then. He was also earlier in the ministry. Obviously, Fudge didn't like that at all. Dumbledore brought Mrs Figg with him as an eyewitness. She was nearby when the Dementors attacked, and she confirmed that she'd noticed the Dementors. Fudge and this ugly woman claimed that she was lying…just like me, but at the end, Dumbledore convinced Madam Bones that I'm innocent. At the vote, most of the Wizengamot members believed him. Percy voted against me, just like Fudge and this toad."

"Oh, Percy the traitor," Ron said with a motionless face. "Dad will be disappointed when he hears about it."

Looking thoughtfully, Harry took another bite from his sandwich. "The strangest thing was that Dumbledore completely ignored me after the hearing. He gave me a quick goodbye, and then he disappeared without even looking at me."

"Maybe he was in a hurry," Hermione said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Yes, maybe," Harry replied doubtfully.

The twins got up and headed back to their room to plan Merlin knows what.

Getting up, Ron looked around the table. "Anyone fancy a game of Exploding Snap?" Patting Harry's shoulder, he added, "to clear your head?"

Harry took a deep breath. "No, sorry, I'm dog-tired, I need to take a nap." When he saw Ron's disappointed look, he added apologetically, "Later!"

Ginny got up to put the empty plates in the sink. She suddenly stopped short when she spotted Harry's name on the front page of the Daily Prophet, lying on the top of the pile of newspapers on the sideboard.

"Crap," she cursed softly, silently hoping that no one had seen the article yet, and Harry would get some well-deserved rest before the next bad news would spoil his mood.

Unfortunately, Hermione already stood behind her, looking over her shoulder. "What's going on?"

"Crap, indeed," the girl hissed agitatedly when she read the headline. She grabbed the newspaper, spread it over the kitchen table and began to read.

When Ginny came back from the sink, Harry was already leaning over the table, skimming Rita Skeeters latest article.

A short glance at the front page was enough for Ginny to catch a glimpse of phrases like "attention-seeking liar" and "discredits Minister Fudge with his lies about You-Know-Who being back", to know that Harry would soon withdraw to his room, to brood for who knows how long.

While Ron tried to read the newspaper's headlines from the opposite side of the table, Hermione was busy inhaling in every detail of the Daily Prophet's articles, muttering incoherent things all the while.

Ginny took the opportunity and put her hand gently on Harry's shoulder. "Harry, we need to talk to Sirius."

Harry stared numbly at the paper in front of him and didn't move. Ginny grabbed Harry's shoulder a bit tighter and repeated a little louder, "Harry!"

When Harry turned around, stone-faced, she repeated, "We need to talk to Sirius."

When he looked at her uncomprehendingly, she explained, "We can't do anything about their lies, but we can do something about Tom, and we should start soon."

Harry met her eyes and slowly began to nod. "Yeah, let's talk to Sirius."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Silently, they made their way to Sirius' room.

"I hope he's there," Ginny spoke as they walked down the hallway to Sirius's room. "Ever since we've been here, I've only seen him at mealtimes, and occasionally in the drawing room in the evenings."

"Let's see," Harry replied, knocking on the door. When there was no response from inside, he knocked again and carefully pushed the door open. The room was dim, the only light came from a crack in the curtains.

"Sirius! Are you here?" Harry asked into the semi-darkness.

When there was no reaction, he looked questioningly at Ginny, running his hands thoughtfully through his hair. "Where could he be?"

"Maybe he's with Buckbeak?" Ginny suggested.

"Yeah, maybe. Let's just have a look," replied Harry, shrugging.

Silently, they climbed the stairs to the next floor. This floor was mostly unused. Since their visit to Buckbeak a couple of days ago, they knew he was in the room at the top of the staircase. Harry turned the doorknob and smiled at Ginny in relief as he slowly pushed the door open.

Buckbeak lay on a haystack in the middle of the room, staring at Sirius, who was sitting on the floor with his legs crossed, leaning against the wall, leafing through a book.

"Ah, visitors." Sirius threw them an amused look and made a gesture towards the floor next to him. "Do you want to sit down with us?"

"Hi, Sirius. Hi, Buckbeak." Ginny smiled at them while Harry grinned." So, this is where the two of you have been hiding."

Buckbeak watched with interest as Harry and Ginny settled on the floor next to Sirius.

Harry waved to Buckbeak. "I hope the old man doesn't bore you to death with his old stories."

"Oh, Harry, that's low," Sirius replied, offended. "I'm the only company my old friend here has. He is always happy when I visit him. You two are the first visitors we have here. So, what brings you here?"

Ginny gave him a serious look, pointing at the family journal lying in his lap. "Did you already take a look into the books? What do you think of Regulus' discoveries? "

The smile vanished from Sirius' face and he looked worried. "That's pretty dark magic if it's true what he found out, and I don't doubt he's right."

Harry leaned forward. "Do you think the information in the books and the Family Journal could help us to fight Voldemort? Regulus mentioned the possibility of merging soul pieces. This sounds quite useful. It doesn't seem to matter how many parts Voldemort has split his soul into. Once we have one Horcrux, we have all. I don't think he knows about this possibility, and it should remain this way. And best of all, we already have one of his soul parts. "

Ginny nodded in agreement. "It's definitely something we should investigate further." Hesitantly, she continued, "Sirius?"

"Hmm," he looked questioningly at her.

"Did you read the Prophet this morning?"

"Ah, so that's where you're coming from." Sirius took a deep breathe. "Yes, I read the Prophet and there was a lot of rubbish in it."

"Do you think we can do something about it?" Ginny asked him doubtfully.

"I have some ideas." Sirius grimaced. "But no really good ones."

"I'm used to the lies written in the papers about me." Harry shrugged. A short look at his face told Ginny that it was hard for him to remain calm.

"But it's not right that they spread such lies about you and claim that you are a liar who's just seeking attention," Ginny replied, agitated.

Harry looked at her. "This isn't about me. It's worse. They're telling people lies about Voldemort. If no one believes that he has returned, he can do whatever he wants, and what he wants is certainly not good."

"You're right," Ginny said thoughtfully, looking from Harry to Sirius. "If we can't do anything about the lies, we should do something about Tom himself."

"Who is Tom?" Sirius asked, puzzled.

"Tom Riddle is the real name of Voldemort," Harry explained. "When he was at Hogwarts, in the time he created the diary Horcrux, he still used his real name." Harry briefly summarized what happened in the Chamber of Secrets when Tom Riddle introduced himself as the future Lord Voldemort. Ginny followed Harry's words with interest, as these details were also new to her, as she had been lying unconscious on the chamber floor at that time.

Sirius looked at them appreciatively and grinned. "Seems the trip to the island was not your first adventure together."

Ginny blushed slightly while Harry looked at her thoughtfully. "You're right, Gin. If no one believes us that Voldemort is back while he's gathering his Death Eaters, then those who know he's back must do something to fight him." He looked from Ginny to Sirius. "And further researching the Horcruxes is definitely not the worst idea."

"Yeah," Ginny confirmed. "That's why I wanted to talk to Sirius when I saw all the crap in the paper."

"You said there are more books on the island," Sirius asked the two teenagers. When they nodded, he continued, "So I'd better prepare myself for a trip to the island."

"You should take Buckbeak with you," said Harry, looking at his four-legged friend. "There's plenty of space and fresh air for him. Kreacher will be happy to serve you on the island. The fresh air there will do you good."

"Oh, you two won't get rid of me so easily," Sirius grinned at Harry. "I won't travel to the island as long as you two are still visiting my house."

"Good idea," Harry replied. "There is still so much we need to talk about. I always have the feeling we've forgotten something." Harry contemplated for a moment and added, "You should charm a communication mirror for yourself, so we can stay in touch when we're back at Hogwarts."

"Oh, yes," Ginny interjected. "Before I forget, I talked to Bill. He promised me to help us. I told him you wanted to talk to him tonight, Sirius."

"Good." Sirius looked at her. "We'll need all the help we can get."


	4. Chapter 4: Summer's End

**Thursday, August 31st, 1995**

Harry jolted from sleep at the sound of loud voices and the rumbling of footsteps in the stairwell that announced the imminent departure of Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the twins, who would spend the day in Diagon Alley buying school supplies.

Mrs Weasley had asked Harry to stay at Grimmauld Place because it would be too dangerous for him, with Voldemort back and everything. She'd offered to buy his books and whatever he needed. Harry had reluctantly agreed to stay behind after Sirius made no move to help him.

Realising the value of a quiet day in a deserted Grimmauld Place, Harry had planned to take advantage of the absence of his friends by having a lie-in before returning to Hogwarts. He also wanted to spend the day with Sirius, talking about the further research of the Horcruxes.

The thought of such a discussion overpowered Harry's desire for more sleep. He stretched one last time, slid out of his bed and made his way to the bathroom to take care of his morning business. 15 minutes later, when he entered the kitchen, freshly showered, Sirius was already sitting at his usual seat, nursing a cup of tea.

"Morning Sirius." Harry grinned at his godfather.

"Morning Harry," he replied. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, great, actually," Harry replied truthfully. "Did you have breakfast yet?"

"Oh, yes, Molly insisted." Sirius chuckled. "She thinks I'll starve to death when I travel to the island."

"Mrs Weasley knows about the trip?" Harry asked in surprise.

"Yeah, sure," replied Sirius. " I told her that Dumbledore sent me on an Order mission to the island. It's not even a lie. I've really told Dumbledore I wanted to search the cottage for more information about Horcruxes, and he thought it was a good idea."

"Oh, clever. " Harry smirked. "Don't forget to take Slytherin's locket with you," he suggested. "I'd feel much better if that damn thing would be out of everyone's reach for everyone."

"The locket is hidden in Buckbeak's room, "Sirius replied, grinning. "Buckbeak will accompany me to the island, so I'm pretty sure I won't forget it."

"Okay, good to know, " Harry said, relieved. "Did you figure out how to make another communication mirror?" Heading to the cupboard to fetch a cup, he continued, "I'd feel better if we can stay in touch when I'm back at Hogwarts."

"I need to talk to Remus," Sirius explained. "He made the mirrors for me and James, and I think he still has the instructions for it. I'll ask him before I leave for the island."

"Good idea," Harry said, pouring himself a cup of tea. "Then you can call me as soon as your mirror is ready."

"That's not so easy." Sirius shook his head. "We need to synchronize the mirrors before we can use them, just like your mirror is synchronized with Ginny's mirror." With a mischievous grin, he added, "How come you're here today without your red-haired girlfriend?"

"She's not my girlfriend," Harry replied, blushing.

"What do you plan to do about it?" Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"Sirius, I ..." Harry stopped. He knew for some time now that he wanted to do something about it. He needed to talk to Ginny before they would return to Hogwarts, and probably wouldn't see each other so often. Alone the thought that Michael Corner would be there waiting for Ginny made him feel sick. Unfortunately, as crowded as Grimmauld Place was, he hadn't gotten a chance to talk to Ginny alone in the last few days ... and they would go back to Hogwarts tomorrow morning. But that was not Sirius' business, he decided. "When do you think the mirror is finished?"

Sirius chuckled, letting Harry get away with the deflection. "If Remus still has his old manual, it will be a matter of minutes. Otherwise, it might take a week, or two."

"We should meet on the next Hogsmeade weekend to synchronize the mirrors," Harry suggested.

"Good idea, when is the first Hogsmeade weekend?" Sirius asked.

"Usually, it's the first or second Saturday of the term so that everyone can buy the things they forgot at home," Harry said, scratching the back of his head. "I'll ask Ginny to send a letter to her mother telling her the date."

"Good, I will take a break from my island holidays to meet you." Sirius reached for the kettle to fill another cup of tea. "Buckbeak's going to like it there." Before taking the first sip of tea, he nodded toward the stove. "Molly saved you some breakfast, it's over there."

"Brill," Harry replied, getting up to fetch the plate. "I'm starving."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Later, in the afternoon, Harry was sitting in the kitchen with Sirius having their tea and scones. Harry had excitedly told his godfather that he was looking forward to returning to Hogwarts. Just the prospect of being able to play Quidditch again let him talk enthusiastically about the upcoming season. Ron had asked his mother for a new broom when she'd promised him a reward for becoming a Prefect, and Harry was looking forward to flying with Ron in the next few days.

"I hope you won't forget your redheaded girlfriend with all your enthusiasm for playing Quidditch," Sirius teased.

Harry looked at him in astonishment, "What makes you think that? Ginny wants to try-out for the team, and I'm pretty sure she'll make it."

Sirius raised his eyebrows. "Is she such a good flyer? Okay, okay, I got it. Why am I not surprised." He immediately backed down when he noticed Harry's most indignant look.

"To be honest," Harry replied, "I've never seen her fly, but she told me that she'd been flying for years and wants to become a chaser."

Harry pondered a moment. With all the excitement of the past few days, he'd forgotten about the wand they'd brought from Regulus' island. They were hoping the wand would be untraceable, but they didn't know for sure and wanted to check it.

"Sirius?" Harry asked carefully. "What do you know about wandlore?"

"Wandlore?" Sirius asked, bewildered. "Why?"

"We found a wand on the island," Harry explained, giving his godfather an expectant look. "You know, the wand Ginny had when we came back."

Sirius nodded. He vaguely remembered. "The wand that was in the bag you gave me after your return?"

"Exactly." Harry looked relieved. "We, or more accurately, Ginny had hoped we could keep the wand."

"Okay." Sirius nodded in agreement. "What is the problem?"

"Before we use it, we wanted to know if it's untraceable," Harry said hesitantly.

" Maybe I'd better not know what you're up to." Sirius sniggered.

"We're not up to anything," Harry replied. "But we think an untraceable wand could become handy."

"Without a doubt," Sirius agreed. "Where is the wand now?"

"It's probably in Ginny's room." Harry was relieved that Sirius took it easy on him. "Can you take a look at the wand when Ginny is back?"

"I'm not an expert, but it couldn't hurt to check it over," Sirius agreed.

The two of them had just emptied their cups, and Harry was on his way to put the dishes in the sink when loud noises announced the return of the Weasleys from their shopping spree to Diagon Alley.

Mrs Weasley's voice was unmistakable as she loudly gave instructions to her children. "Before you forget, you'd best bring your things to your rooms, and pack them away in your trunks. That includes you, Ronald."

At that moment, Ron burst through the kitchen door, triumphantly holding his brand new Cleansweep Eleven in the air. Hermione followed, rolling her eyes.

"Hey mate," Ron yelled ecstatically. "Look, a Cleansweep Eleven. It's made of Spanish oak, it has an anti-jinx varnish and a built-in vibration control. It's marvellous."

Harry couldn't help but grin about his best friend's antics. He stepped up to him and patted his shoulder. "Congratulations on the new broom, Ron. This coming weekend, you can prove that you can keep it under control," he called, laughing.

"Oi mate, I'll show you how a Weasley can fly," Ron answered with his chest puffed out.

A snort made Harry turn around. Ginny stood in the door, barely able to stop laughing. "Boys," she giggled, shaking her head. "All mouth and no trousers."

Turning, she waved, "Have fun, you two," and headed up the stairway towards her room.

"I can't wait either, Ron," Harry said, shaking his head about Ginny's attitude.

"Ron, you need to bring your things to your room," Hermione intervened.

"Oh, Hermione," Ron said. "I'm allowed to show my best mate my new broom, am I not?"

"You've heard your mother," Hermione insisted. "We need to bring our things to our rooms and pack our trunks."

"Hermione, it'll only take five minutes to show Harry..."

Ron's final words faded into the background as Harry rushed up the stairs behind Ginny.

Reaching her door, he waited a moment, uncertain what he wanted to do, then he knocked and waited for an answer.

"Yes?" As soon as he heard Ginny's voice, he warily opened the door and peered into the room.

"Hi, Harry." Ginny smiled at him, surprised to see him. "How can I help you?"

"I asked Sirius if he'd check our spare wand," Harry explained his presence.

"Ah, do you mean my spare wand?" Ginny replied with a cheeky grin.

"Whatever," said Harry, rolling his eyes. "Please come to Buckbeak's room in half an hour and bring the wand with you."

"Shouldn't be a problem," Ginny replied, nodding. "I'll just pack my stuff to be ready to go back to Hogwarts. Are you done packing your things? You've had all day."

"Well..." Harry said sheepishly, relieved to hear Hermione arguing with Ron in the staircase. "I'll see you at Buckbeak's."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Deep in thought, Harry walked up the stairs to Buckbeak's room, pondering ways he could talk to Ginny alone. They'd said good night using their mirrors almost every night for the past few weeks but asking Ginny out over the mirrors was out of the question. He hoped Sirius would leave them alone in Buckbeak's room for a while when he'd finished examining the spare wand. All he had to do was find an excuse to ask Ginny to stay behind. When he reached the top floor, he walked to the door opposite the stairs, turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. Sirius was already there patting the back of the Hippogriff who'd made himself comfortable on the floor. "Hey, Beaky, how are you?"

When Sirius noticed Harry, he turned around. "Ah, there you are, where's the wand?"

"Ginny will be here any minute, she'll bring the wand with her," Harry answered, kneeling beside Buckbeak to stroke his feathers.

"Sirius?" He asked after a while, without interrupting his ministrations.

"Yeah. That's me," his godfather answered with a grin.

"Sirius," Harry went on determinedly, getting up and looking Sirius in the eye. "Can you leave me alone with Ginny for a moment when we're done here?"

Sirius looked at him for a moment before a big grin spread over his face. "Oh, if I'm not mistaken, you've finally come to a decision."

"What decision?"

Startled, Harry turned around and suddenly stood face to face with Ginny. Slightly blushing, he stammered, "Well, I ... I've come to the decision that you can keep the spare wand."

"Oh, how generous," giggled Ginny, pulling the wand out of her back pocket. "I already have it."

"Well," said Harry, relieved that he had found a way out. "It's yours now."

"Thanks," Ginny replied, looking at him, suspicious about an answer that was obviously not completely honest. "Of course, it would be even better if the wand isn't traceable. It would be much easier doing Mum's chores."

"Oh," Sirius said with a grin. "Here at Grimmauld Place you can do magic, nobody will notice. Of course, you have to be careful that Molly won't catch you," he continued as the two teenagers looked at him in astonishment. "With the Fidelius Charm and all the adults living here, the Ministry won't notice."

"And you're telling us just today when we head back to Hogwarts tomorrow?" Harry asked indignantly.

"Nobody asked me before," Sirius replied with a mischievous grin and held out his hand to Ginny. "Okay, show me the wand."

Ginny handed him the wand and Sirius looked at it attentively. "Hmm, I wonder to whom the wand once belonged. It still looks pretty good. Maybe it's even from the time before the Ministry ordered to put the trace on the wands of minors."

Sirius drew his wand and tapped the tip of the spare wand. "Prior Incantato!"

When a faint shadow Harry didn't recognize appeared over the wand, Sirius chuckled and looked at Ginny. "A Stinging Hex! Who was the poor sod?"

Ginny blushed slightly and mumbled, "Fred asked once too often if I need calf-packings again. He has a strange way of begging for punishment." A mischievous smile crossed her face. "But don't tell him. Fred still thinks it was George. It's hilarious to watch them arguing about it."

Sirius snickered, and Harry shook his head, chuckling. "I'm glad you've made good use of your new wand." Turning to Sirius, Harry continued, "Well, what do you think? Is the wand untraceable?"

"I'm pretty sure it is," Sirius explained. "The wand is probably still from Uncle Alphard, or even older, and Uncle Alphard would never have used a traceable wand."

"That's brill." Ginny smirked at Harry.

"I'm glad that's clarified," said Harry, relieved. He looked at Sirius and raised his eyebrows several times, slightly nodding towards the door.

Sirius took this hint. Smiling at Ginny, he excused himself. "I'll go and get ready for dinner. See you down in the kitchen."

The moment Sirius opened the door, Mrs Weasley's voice sounded in the stairwell. "Dinner is ready. Ginny, can you please help set the table?"

"Shit," Harry swore. When he saw Ginny's questioning look, he grimaced and continued, "I'll come with you and help you set the table. I'm starving, too."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Later that evening, Harry was sitting in the drawing room with his friends. He just had been trounced by Ron in the third game of chess in a row. Hermione had made herself comfortable with a book on her lap in one of the armchairs - after telling the others with a satisfied smile that she'd finished packing her trunk.

Ginny was lying on the sofa, flipping listlessly through a book. Harry couldn't see what it was, but that was not because of his lack of interest. He had been watching Ginny nervously out of the corner of his eyes all evening, not paying enough attention to the game of chess with Ron. In the last few weeks, they had often successfully tried to go to bed before Ron and Hermione, to have an undisturbed chat through their mirrors for a few minutes. As Ginny began to cover her mouth with her hand and yawn, it was time for Harry to act. He wanted to talk to Ginny, but it was too important to him to use the mirrors.

"I give up, Ron." Harry stood up and patted his friend on the shoulder. "I didn't have a chance today anyway."

"Today?" Ron grinned at him.

"I'd better go to bed now." Harry yawned. "I still need to pack my trunk for tomorrow."

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Ron looked at him in astonishment. "You can pack your trunk tomorrow morning. We have plenty of time, we're already in London."

Hermione looked at him indignantly. "Ron, you always wait until the very last minute and then you forget half of your things."

From behind him, Harry heard Ginny mumble her "Good night", followed by her footsteps.

'Shit,' he thought. He really wanted to talk to her before she disappeared into her room. Determined, he spluttered, "Anyway, I'm off then." Making a dismissive gesture with his hand, he headed after Ginny.

"Hey, Gin," he called, hurrying up the stairs.

"Yes, Harry?" Ginny turned, already halfway up the stairs to her room.

"Do you have a moment?" Harry asked, barely able to suppress his nervousness.

"Of course, what's up?" Ginny smiled at him.

"I want to ask you something," said Harry, somewhat embarrassed.

"Sure, what?" Ginny gave him a curious gaze.

"Gin, do you...," he hesitated unsettled.

"What's bothering you, Harry?" Ginny asked softly, giving him an encouraging smile.

"A few weeks ago, on the island, you said that the job as your boyfriend is vacant," Harry spluttered, "…and I... what would you say if I'd apply for the position?"

Ginny, visibly speechless, stared at him in surprise. "Harry, you ..."

"I hope I'm not too late," Harry interrupted her when an uneasy feeling rose in him.

"Too late?" Ginny asked perplexed.

"I hope Michael didn't ask you yet," Harry muttered.

"So, you're asking me because you're afraid that Michael might ask me out?" Ginny gave him an inquisitive look.

"Oh no," Harry exclaimed startled. "I've been thinking about it for a while now, actually since we got back from the island." Taking a deep breath to suppress his nervousness, he continued, "I keep thinking of the time on the island, and the more I think about it, the more I understand that I liked the time there because you were with me." Hesitantly he added, "I didn't ask you earlier because I didn't want to scare you. But to be honest, I can't stand the thought of seeing you with Michael. So, maybe that's part of the reason I…" Harry ran his fingers through his hair, "...why I'm standing there, stuttering like an idiot."

Harry took another deep breath and looked gingerly up at Ginny, who in turn looked wide-eyed at him.

"Oh..." Ginny stared open-mouthed at Harry.

"Ginny, I wouldn't be mad at you if you were... if we just remain friends," Harry said in a brittle voice, not sure what to make out of her reaction.

Ginny smiled at him. "Oh, Harry, no."

Harry felt as if his heart would stop beating, the 'No' echoing in his ears.

"Oh, Harry, I'm sorry, that's not what I meant," Ginny exclaimed, startled, when she noticed that she'd said no. "Of course, I would like to be your girlfriend."

Harry's face slowly regained colour. "That sounds a bit like there is a but," he said, still unsure.

A mischief smile slowly spread over Ginny's face. "If you want to apply for the job as my boyfriend, I'd like to have a demonstration of your qualifications first."

Looking expectantly into his eyes, she put her arms around Harry's neck. With his right hand, Harry gently reached for the back of her head and gently pressed his lips to hers. It felt like in heaven. When he gasped for air after a few seconds, he smiled sheepishly at Ginny. "What do you think?"

"Oh, Harry." Ginny smiled back. "I've been hoping for years that you'd ask me that question. Would it be so bad if I let you wait a few more minutes for my answer? I think I need one more sample, just to be sure…" Snuggling up to him, she continued the kiss.

When they finally parted with swollen lips and said goodbye for the night, Harry cast a thoughtful gaze. "I'd better tell Ron."

"Leave it to me, Harry." Ginny looked into his eyes. A mischief smile crossed her face when she added, "Or better, let's do it together. Tomorrow morning at breakfast."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked flabbergasted.

"Yes." Ginny grinned. "Unless you want to hide it from someone."

"Never." Harry gave her one last goodnight kiss before Ginny slipped into her room.


	5. Chapter 5: Hoggy Warty Hogwarts

**Friday, September 1st, 1995**

Ginny sat comfortably in her window seat in the compartment of the Hogwarts Express. She leaned her head against Harry's chest, who'd put his arm around her shoulder.

Ron and Hermione had taken the seats next to the door as they soon had to leave for the Prefects meeting.

Neville had joined them just after the Hogwarts Express departed, giving Harry a quizzical look when he noticed Ginny in his arm.

Ignoring his questioning look, Ginny smiled at him. "Hello, Neville, I hope you had a nice holiday."

Since last year's Yule Ball, she had chatted a lot with Neville, mostly during breakfast, as they often met on their way down to the Great Hall in the morning.

"It wasn't too bad," replied Neville as he heaved his trunk into the luggage rack. "My Gram allowed me to plant some of my own magical plants in the greenhouses, but unfortunately, now that they've grown bigger, the holidays are over, and I must return to the school." He sat down by the window opposite Ginny and looked around. "I hope you also had a nice holiday."

"Apart from all the chores, it was even a bit adventurous." Ginny chuckled.

"Adventurous?" Neville raised his eyebrows, looking from her to Harry and back.

Just then, the compartment door opened again, and to Ginny's delight, her friend, Luna Lovegood, came in and asked for a free seat. Ginny happily introduced her to the others. Since Luna was a Ravenclaw, she wasn't well-acquainted with all the Gryffindors. She sat down in the only vacant seat between Neville and Hermione.

"You can have the window seat if you want," Neville offered, smiling shyly at the blonde girl.

"Oh, thanks, that's very nice of you, Neville Longbottom," Luna replied with a dreamy smile, and slid over to the window seat when Neville got up to change places with her. Giving the boy a short smile, she turned her attention to a copy of a tabloid magazine she'd placed upside down on her lap.

Ginny turned back to the window, contently watching the London suburbs passing by. With a genuine anticipation, so different from the years before, she thought of the upcoming school year at Hogwarts. She still couldn't believe that she was sitting here, cuddling with Harry; that she would call him her boyfriend. She imagined what they would do together over the next months. She blushed a little at that thought, but there were also serious things they would do. The Horcruxes. She hoped that Sirius would find the way to the island to search for more information on those.

She was startled out of her thoughts when Hermione got up and opened the compartment door. "Let's head to the Prefects meeting," she said, looking at Ron. Turning to the doorway, she put her schoolbag over her shoulders. "See you later," she bid her farewell, raising her hand and turned to walk down the corridor towards the head of the train.

"There is no need to rush," Ron moaned. "There's still plenty of time." Shrugging, he looked around, rolled his eyes and hurried after Hermione.

It was quiet again in the compartment after Ron and Hermione had left for the Prefects' carriage. Satisfied, Ginny turned her attention back to the landscape passing by the compartment window, tuning out the conversation between Harry and Neville.

She smiled happily as she thought of the events of the morning.

..

 _Hermione had given her a suspicious look when she was already up and slipped into the shower right before her. She was already on her way down to the kitchen when her mother made her round to wake everyone who would travel back to Hogwarts this morning. She retained her seat next to the chair where Harry usually sat by placing their plates and cutlery accordingly._

 _Her mother came back from her wake-up round. "Good morning Ginny, how come you're the first one up?"_

 _"I don't know, maybe it's the excitement of going back to school," she said casually._

 _The twins came noisily down the stairs, calling their good mornings in unison, and sat down at the kitchen table. Moments later, Hermione entered the kitchen. Cheerfully smiling she choose her seat next to Ginny. Obviously, she couldn't wait to get back to school._

 _It wasn't long before Harry and Ron came down the stairs together. Ron pointed out to Harry that they should start the Quidditch training and the try-outs as soon as possible; best next week._

 _Harry entered the kitchen with a friendly good morning and gave Ginny a questioning look._

 _"Sit down, luv." Ginny smiled at him. "I've already set our plates and cutlery." Pulling his head down, she kissed him soundly on his mouth._

 _Silence._

 _While the word 'luv' still had gone unnoticed in the morning fuss, the kiss was not._

 _Ron looked at Harry in horror. "Harry, what ..."_

 _Ginny gave her brother a warning gaze, silencing him. She let her gaze wander over the others sitting at the table. "Any questions?"_

 _Ron's face flushed, but he didn't ask further questions, just started filling his plate. He would probably question Harry in the evening when they're alone in their dorms. By then, his anger hopefully would have passed. Hermione gave them an "I knew it" look but said nothing. The twins were chuckling and wondering how to make the most of the new information._

 _Sirius, who had just come into the kitchen, stood in the doorway, beaming like an idiot. He walked up to them and took them both into his arms, smirking. "I knew it!"_

 _When she finally dared to look her mother in the eyes, she noticed her astonished look. "Young lady, I think we need to have a good chat before you head to Kings Cross."_

 _"Yes, Mum." Ginny rolled her eyes. So far, the matter went surprisingly quiet. She had hoped that short and painless would be the best way to bring the news to the people._

 _When she finally looked at Harry, who stood beside her, still speechless, she chuckled, "Sit down, luv."_

 _When Harry had finally digested the shock, he shook his head, but couldn't resist grinning. "Witch," he murmured under his breath and sat down next to Ginny._

 _She'd been a bit embarrassed when her mother insisted on having The Talk with her after breakfast, the extended version of The Talk she'd given her the year before. But in the end, it had been worth it. Everyone had gotten the news, and since her mother hadn't objected, the twins couldn't blackmail her, and it was easier to deal with Ron, too. The world seemed to be perfect._

..

She took Harry's hand, intertwined their fingers and squeezed them, giving him a content smile. It felt so good to be able to do this.

"It's nice to sit in a compartment with you," she mumbled dreamily.

"Why didn't you sit with us earlier?" Harry shot her a mischievous look.

Turning her head, Ginny looked him in the eyes. "In my first year, you didn't take the Hogwarts Express, do you remember?"

"Oh, the trip with the Ford Anglia. How could I forget about it?" Harry grinned at her.

Ginny continued, "in my second year, I was looking forward to sitting with you, but Ron shooed me away."

"Did he? Really? I didn't know about it." Harry looked at her in astonishment.

"Oh." Ginny poked her index finger into his ribs. "You sat there and the moment you saw me you told Ron that you wanted to talk to him and Hermione in private. Ron then shooed me away, telling me I should go make my own friends."

"I didn't do such a thing, did I?" Harry marvelled.

"You did," Ginny insisted. "You even gave me a strange look and turned away when I left to find a seat in another compartment."

"With whom did you sit together?" Harry asked genuinely interested.

"With Luna," Ginny said. "Luckily, I already knew her. We used to play together when we were younger, so I didn't have to sit all alone again." She gave Luna a friendly smile, receiving a dreamy nod from the blonde girl in return.

The compartment door rumbled open again, revealing Ron with Hermione in tow.

"This was much ado about nothing again," Ron announced.

"Oh, Ron, many important things have been discussed," Hermione interjected.

"Okay, the most important things didn't need a discussion, did they?" Ron replied annoyed, throwing himself onto his seat. "Malfoy and Parkinson are the Prefects for Slytherin."

"Oh, why am I not surprised," Ginny moaned, grimacing.

Hermione had just sat down in her seat when there was a commotion in the corridor. Ginny looked up and saw Malfoy and his cronies approaching, shoving everybody out of their way. Just before Goyle tried to tear the compartment door open, she noticed Hermione waving her wand, muttering, "Colloportus!"

When Goyle tried several times in vain to open the door, Malfoy angrily shoved him aside and tried it himself. When he couldn't open the door either, he turned around, obviously seething with rage, and marched back the way he came from, his cronies in tow.

Hermione got up with a smug smile. Tapping the door three times with her wand, she muttered, "Alohomora!"

When the door opened with a clicking noise, she sat back and smiled furtively at the others.

"Thank you, Hermione!" Harry said relieved. "The ferret boy would have spoiled my good mood."

"You're welcome," Hermione replied, turning to Luna in an attempt to change the subject. "What are you reading?"

"It's The Quibbler," Luna explained, apparently wondering about a question whose answer was so obvious.

"The Quibbler?" Hermione asked with interest. "I've never heard of it. What's in it?"

"My father is the editor of The Quibbler," Luna declared undeterred. "He always has very interesting articles in it. The recent edition contains a report about the common Norwegian Nargle."

"Nargle?" Hermione looked at her in disbelief. "Nargles don't exist."

"What makes you think Nargles don't exist?" Luna regarded Hermione with an intense look. "Just because you've never read anything about Nargles, doesn't mean they don't exist. Ask Ginevra, she once caught a Nargle."

Ginny giggled when Hermione looked at her in astonishment. "Oh yes, on my fifth birthday, I caught a Nargle. At first, I thought it was a gnat." Ginny laughed.

"What did you do with the Nargle?" Hermione looked at her searchingly.

"Oh, it escaped when I tried to take a closer look." Ginny shrugged her shoulders.

"You promised me your Harry Potter doll when you got the real Harry Potter, Ginevra." Luna looked at her expectantly.

"Oh, Luna." Ginny blushed, slapping the girl's knee. "This is mean."

Unfazed, Luna shrugged her shoulders. "Well, you promised me." Without further ado, she turned her attention back to her copy of The Quibbler.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

The train slowed down as they reached Hogsmeade Station. The boys helped the girls with their trunks before dragging their own from the racks. When the train finally stopped, they hurried to catch the first available carriage to the castle.

An unpleasantly cold drizzle was spraying over the carriages and the landscape when they finally reached the castle. They hastened to the Entrance Hall to get into the warmth of the Great Hall. Glad to finally be back in the familiar surroundings and dry, they headed to the Gryffindor table to find their usual seats, except for Ginny, who took the seat next to Harry. Soon, the first years were brought in by Professor McGonagall.

"They better hurry," Ron groaned. "I'm starving."

"Hush! The Sorting is starting," Hermione said, turning away from him to listen to the Sorting Hat.

Meanwhile, Ginny was inspecting the staff table, puzzled by the sight of a middle-aged woman looking a bit odd in her pink costume and a cap of the same colour. She nudged Harry lightly. "Look at her," she whispered, nodding her head in the direction of the staff table. "She can't possibly be the new Defence professor. Hagrid is nowhere to be seen. I can't imagine that she will be teaching Magical Creatures either."

Harry followed her gaze and studied the professors seated at the staff table thoughtfully. "That's weird," he murmured. "She was at my hearing, she's the ugly woman I told you about. Fudge, and this woman in particular, absolutely wanted me to get to expelled. I was lucky Dumbledore made his appearance at the right moment with Mrs Figg in tow. Without his help and Mrs Figg's testimony, I wouldn't be here now."

"Who is Mrs Figg?" Ginny asked. "I remember you mentioned her name before."

"She's a neighbour of the Dursleys," Harry replied. "She's a squib and she saw the Dementors attacking Dudley and me."

"Oh," Ginny replied. "But that doesn't explain what this odd woman is doing here. Do you know her name?"

Harry frowned thoughtfully for a moment. "I can't remember exactly. It was something with bitch. Ambitch or something like that."

Ginny snorted, "That's what she looks like."

At that moment, the sorting ceremony was finally over, and the food appeared on the tables. Distracted by the food, Ginny forgot the odd woman for a while. After Harry had filled his plate with roast beef, potatoes and vegetables, Ginny loaded her own plate and started eating.

"Hey, there's enough for everyone," Harry complained as she repeatedly stole pieces of carrot from his plate.

"It tastes better from your plate," chuckled Ginny.

"We can exchange the plates," Harry offered.

"And what's the fun of that?" Ginny grinned at him.

Harry only shook his head in defeat but couldn't hide a grin.

After the meal, Dumbledore rose to hold his annual speech. The students were surprised to hear that the strange looking woman, Dolores Umbridge, the Senior Undersecretary of the Minister of Magic, would be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. The announcement that Professor Grubbly-Plank was once again taking over Hagrid's teaching duties was almost drowned out by the noise in the hall.

"Ehem, ehem," sounded a magically amplified voice through the Great Hall.

Immediately, there was a perplexed silence.

In front of the staff table, right next to Professor Dumbledore, stood the odd pink clothed woman, sweetly grinning at her audience.

"Good evening, children," she began and let her eyes wander over the students.

"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. We will ensure that the lessons taught here at Hogwarts meet the highest standards and we will take the appropriate steps to reach this goal. However, progress for progress' sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions in the education of our students often require no tinkering. Furthermore, we will make sure that the lessons can be held undisturbed by external influences."

Suddenly she turned her gaze to Harry. "As I've heard, you've been informed that a certain Dark Wizard is at large once again." She paused for a moment to let her words sink in. Looking directly into Harry's eyes, she exclaimed loudly emphasizing every single word, "That is a lie!"

She let her eyes wander over the students again and went on, "and we'll prevent lies from being spread at this school."

"What does this woman want from me. Why is she here?" Harry asked worriedly, more to himself.

"Not to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, anyway," Hermione replied.

"Yes," Harry replied. "That's what I thought, too."

"She will try to provoke you, so she can expel you," Ginny mused. "She'll try to accomplish what she didn't get in your trial. It's quite obvious that Fudge has sent her to prevent you from telling the truth here at Hogwarts."

"Ginny is right," Hermione interjected. "Don't let her provoke you, under any circumstances."

"But I can't let her tell lies about me!" Harry replied annoyed.

Ginny touched Harry's arm to calm him down. "Harry, we have an important job to do, don't forget this. Sirius will be on our island right now, we have more important things to do than to let ourselves be distracted by this toad."

"Yeah, you're right," Harry admitted. "But it doesn't feel right."

Ginny smiled reassuringly at Harry. "No, it doesn't. But I was looking forward to being with you at Hogwarts this school year and I can't let that woman spoil my fun by keeping you in detention all the time."

When Harry smiled at her admitting defeat, she looked him into his eyes. "Promise me that you won't let you provoke by this woman."

"I'll try it, at least," Harry promised.

"I think that's the best I could ask for now," Ginny replied, kissing Harry's cheek.

In the meantime, Umbridge had finished her speech and Dumbledore had declared the feast was over. The noise level in the Great Hall rose immediately as the students got up to make their way towards their dorms.

Ginny briefly squeezed Harry's hand, whispering into his ear, "I need to use the loo. I'll be right back."

"'Kay, I'll be waiting for you," Harry replied, giving her hand a slight squeeze in return

Ginny got up and headed towards the girls' toilets. The first students were already on their way to their common rooms.

Hermione was busy summoning the First years to escort them to the Gryffindor Tower. "Come on, Ron, you're a Prefect, too," she called to Ginny's brother.

Ginny chuckled as Ron mumbled something about there being no hurry. She made her way through the crowd, glad the toilets weren't far away, and she could escape the rumpus.

After Ginny finished her business and walked back through the door of the girls' loo, she heard someone call her name. "Ginny!"

She turned and stood face to face with Michael Corner, leaning against the wall opposite the loo, giving her a shy smile.

"Hi, Michael," she replied, visibly surprised to see the boy. "Nice to see you." She smiled at the dark-haired Ravenclaw boy. "I hope you had nice holidays?"

"They were great," the boy answered, evidently pleased to see Ginny. "How were yours?"

"Great," Ginny replied. She was really happy to see Michael again because they both had a few nice chats at the end of last term. On the other hand, she also wanted to go back to Harry and not make him wait unnecessarily.

"Let's talk about our holidays in Hogsmeade next weekend. What do you think? Do you want to go with me into Hogsmeade next Saturday?" Michel asked with an expectant smile on his face.

"Oh," Ginny blurted. "I'm sorry, I can't go to Hogsmeade with you."

"Do you have something else in mind?" the boy asked visibly disappointed.

"I think I'll be going to Hogsmeade with Harry," she said, guardedly. Harry hadn't asked her yet, but she was confident he would ask her as soon as he knew there would be a Hogsmeade weekend.

"Harry?" Michael raised an eyebrow, quizzically.

"Yes, Harry Potter," Ginny confirmed.

"So, you two ...?"

"Yep," Ginny nodded. "During the holidays."

"Oh." Michael looked at her crestfallen. After a moment of embarrassing silence, he added, "Please let me know if you ever need company for a Hogsmeade weekend."

With a shy smile, he waved his goodbye, turned around and headed back to the Great Hall. Ginny followed him with a thoughtful look. She hadn't thought of Michael for weeks, in fact since her involuntary journey to Regulus' island.

With swift steps, she headed back to the Gryffindor table and was glad to see Harry still sitting there as promised. He gave her a questioning look. "What happened?"

"Oh, nothing," Ginny explained, grabbing his hand and taking a deep breath. "I met Michael."

"Michael?" Harry looked at her, enquiringly.

"He asked me to go into Hogsmeade with him next weekend," she confessed.

"And?" said Harry.

"And what, Silly? I told him I'd go with you." She grinned as Harry breathed in relief. "But this doesn't mean you don't have to ask me if I'm coming with you."

"Oh, right." Harry nodded. "Do you want to?"

"Do I want to what?" Ginny asked.

"Come to Hogsmeade with me?"

"Oh, of course, but it's nice that you asked." Ginny pulled him up from the bench. "Let's head up to the common room. I want to cuddle with my boyfriend by the fire."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Saturday, September 2th, 1995**

The next morning, Ginny trotted sleepily down the stairs from her dorm room to the common room. The night before they all had exchanged stories about their holidays and forgotten about the time until the wee hours of the morning. Even the hot morning shower had not really awakened her. Fortunately, it was Saturday and there were still two days off until Monday morning.

She smiled as she saw Harry sitting in a chair near the stairs. "Hey, good morning." She waved to him. Trying to suppress a yawn, she started to giggle when she failed miserably.

Harry gave her an amused grin. "Hey, you slept well?"

"Ah, your good mood hurts," Ginny complained with a small smile. "Let's head down to breakfast. I hope it helps."

"Yeah, let's head down to the Great Hall," Harry agreed. "Ron and Hermione already left."

Ginny grabbed Harry's hand after they slipped through the portrait hole, and side by side they headed down to the Great Hall.

As they walked down the marble staircase, Ginny suddenly stopped. "Did Ron say anything to you last night?"

"Ron?" Harry glanced at her. "You could say that."

"And?"

"I had to promise him that I wouldn't hurt you."

"Git," Ginny mumbled as they moved on. "I can take care of myself."

"I know," Harry confirmed. "And he promised not to interfere." Harry squeezed her hand. "You should let him be as long as he sticks to it."

"If you think so." Ginny rolled her eyes. "I wonder how long he'll remember his promise."

They entered the Great Hall and walked over to the Gryffindor table. Greeting their friends, they took their seats from the previous evening, opposite Ron and Hermione.

They'd just sat down and started filling their plates when Angelina Johnson stood up. "Now, that we're finally all here," she began, scanning the rows of Gryffindors. "I want to let you know that I'll be replacing Oliver Wood as Gryffindor Quidditch captain."

Pleased murmurs interrupted her. She waited a moment until the murmurs slowly ceased. "We're going to hold try-outs for new and reserve players next Friday, September the 8th. All regular players need to be there, and everyone who thinks he or she could be reinforcement for us is invited to the try-outs."

She glanced over the Gryffindors seated at the table. "You'll find a note with the schedule by tomorrow morning in the common room. That's it. Have a nice weekend. See you next Friday."

Grinning, she sat down and dedicating herself to her breakfast again.

Angelina's announcement, of course, led to some lively discussions and made breakfast a noisy affair.

Ginny glanced up as Ron turned to Harry. "Harry, what do you think? Now that Oliver is gone, can you imagine me trying out for the Keeper?"

Harry was immediately enthusiastic. "That would be fantastic, Ron. We haven't played Quidditch for ages, but last summer you did an excellent job as a Keeper."

Ron nodded euphorically. "Yeah, I think I'll try. I'll try-out for the Keeper position."

Suddenly Harry nudged Ginny. "And you? You said you wanted to try-out for a Chaser?"

Ginny glared at Ron as he snorted. "Of course, I will try. Though it will be hard to beat Katie, Angelina, and Alicia. But I won't chicken out."

Ginny smiled in relief and blushed slightly when Harry squeezed her hand and looked her in the eye. "You're gonna make it."

"Thanks," she replied, impressed that Harry so obviously supported her. On the other hand, he had already told her that he liked the idea that she wanted to try out for the Quidditch team.

"Do you want to go flying with me this afternoon?" Harry suddenly asked. "You can try out my Firebolt. We wanted to try out Ron's new broom anyway, so let's go flying together. What do you think?"

"I'd like that very much." Ginny's eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Harry turned to Ron. "Ron, I'm going to go flying with Ginny after lunch. Are you coming along? We wanted to try out your broom anyway."

"Ginny doesn't have a broom," Ron reminded him with a slight frown.

"She can take my Firebolt while we're taking turns trying out your new broom," Harry replied determinedly.

Ron raised his eyebrows. "Okay, if you think so. We can also ask the others, maybe we'll have enough for a pick-up game of Quidditch."

Ginny's attention was diverted from the conversation when suddenly an owl landed next to Ron on the table and extended her leg to Hermione.

"Oh, Hermione, I didn't know you subscribed to the Daily Prophet?" Ginny asked, amazed.

Hermione shrugged. "I thought we'd better know what the Ministry is doing, and Umbridge's speech last night convinced me that it is really important to be informed so that we won't experience a nasty surprise."

She unfolded the newspaper and pointed to the headline on the first page. "Look!"

 _The Department of Magic sends Senior Undersecretary of the Minister of Magic, Dolores Umbridge, to Hogwarts to ensure the quality of the education and the prevent lies from being spread about the supposedly alleged return of You-Know-Who._

Casting a sidelong glance at Harry, Ginny was glad that he had resumed his Quidditch discussion with Ron and didn't care about the content of the Daily Prophet. Everything she wanted now was a nice final weekend before the new school year started properly.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Saturday, September 9th, 1995**

"Damn," Ginny groaned. It was hopeless. She had turned over and over in her bed, desperately trying to go back to sleep. It has been in vain. The thought of her first Hogsmeade trip with Harry had chased away any thoughts of another hour of sleep. After being locked up at Grimmauld Place all summer and the week inside the castle, the prospect of a day out in the fresh air with Harry was overwhelming.

Finally, she gave up, dragged herself out of bed and headed to the bathroom. The hot shower alleviated the soreness in her muscles a bit and reminded her of the Quidditch try-outs the evening before. Much to her delight, she had attained the position of the reserve Chaser of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. She had been so happy, and when Harry congratulated her with a crooked smile, she'd thrown herself around his neck and kissed him right there in the middle of the Quidditch pitch.

In the days before the try-outs, she'd been very nervous. Flying had always had been her favourite pastime during the holidays. But being locked up at Grimmauld Place all summer long didn't help her confidence in flying. She hadn't ridden a broom for over a year. The few hours of flying the previous Saturday, when Harry and Ron had tried her brother's new broom had been fun. Of course, she'd taken full advantage of the opportunity to test Harry's Firebolt. No wonder she was still a bit sore as she hobbled down the stairs to the common room.

Ginny was already wearing her robes because she and Harry had agreed to go to Hogsmeade right after breakfast to save time. They wanted to meet with Sirius and then stroll a bit through the streets of Hogsmeade, window shopping.

When she strode into the common room and looked around, Ginny found that Harry wasn't there yet. She wasn't surprised. After all, she was early. To pass the time, she lounged into an armchair and flipped through a Quidditch magazine someone had left on one of the tables.

Absorbed by the magazine, she startled to suddenly find Harry standing beside her, smiling. "Good Morning, Ginny. Did you fall out of bed?"

She put the magazine aside and got up. Smiling, she approached Harry and gave him a hug and a peck on the cheek. "Good morning, Harry."

"When you're done, we could head down to breakfast." Ginny heard her brother's voice from the entrance.

Ginny rolled her eyes and grabbed Harry's hand. "Yeah, we better head down for breakfast before my dear brother gets grumpy," she said, linking arms with Harry, and steering him towards the portrait hole.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

After breakfast, Ginny pushed her way through a crowd of noisily chatting students, waiting for their friends in the Entrance Hall, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione in tow. They had decided to walk together down to Hogsmeade and to split up halfway to the village. Harry and Ginny would head to an appointment with Sirius in the Shrieking Shack, while their friends would spend the morning in Hogsmeade.

The four friends silently walked down the path to the village in a sedate pace, Ron and Hermione always a few steps ahead. Ginny was happily holding hands with Harry, giving him an occasional smile. The fresh air had blown away the last bits of tiredness. Although the chilly morning mist made her shiver a bit, she felt quite content.

As they reached the junction to the Whomping Willow, Harry stopped. Squeezing Ginny's hand, he turned to Ron and Hermione. "Have fun in Hogsmeade." Giving Ron a mischievous grin, he added laughingly, "You better watch out that Hermione doesn't buy too many books. In the end, you'll have to carry them all back to Hogwarts."

Ron looked wide-eyed. "Books?" He turned to Hermione, calling, "You didn't say anything about buying books, did you, Hermione?"

Hermione blushed slightly. "Today is the opening of the new branch of Flourish and Blott's. I don't want to miss it. They announced a lot of special offers."

"Hermione, we actually wanted to go to Zonko's and Honeydukes," Ron replied, slightly annoyed.

Ginny looked at Harry, rolling her eyes. "Why do they always fight?"

"Ah, that's nothing," Harry replied chuckling. "But it suits me well at the moment." He pointed to a group of students arriving from the castle. "We better let them pass so they don't notice that we're not staying together with Ron and Hermione. I don't want anyone following us."

When the group had walked past and disappeared behind the next turn of the road, Harry interrupted his arguing friends. "See you at one o'clock in the Three Broomsticks?"

Ron nodded, still slightly annoyed, and Hermione confirmed, "Yes, we'll meet you at one." Carefully looking around, she continued softly, "Say hi to Sirius from us."

"Of course, we will," Harry replied. Looking around to make sure no one was in sight, he led Ginny down the byway back to the Whomping Willow.

They walked hand in hand back to the Hogwarts Grounds. Silently anticipating the meeting Sirius and finding out about his investigations, they remained deep in their own thoughts, exchanging only short glances every now and then.

As the willow came into sight, Ginny looked up at Harry, smiling. "Are you looking forward to meeting Sirius?"

"What a question," Harry answered cheerfully, squeezing her hand. "I hope he brought the mirror with him."

"And that he'd found more hints about the Horcruxes in the books," Ginny added.

"Exactly!" Harry said, looking around as they reached the tree with its wildly twirling branches.

"What are you looking for?" Ginny asked him, taking a closer look at the odd willow. She had never had the opportunity to be so close to the strange tree.

"Ah, this should be suitable for our purposes," Harry mumbled, picking up a stick lying on the ground a few feet away. He bent down so that the branches of the tree wouldn't hit him, and slowly walked towards the tree. "Do you see the knob?" he called to Ginny, pointing to the roots of the tree. "When you push this knob, the branches stop moving." He pushed the knob with the stick and the tree suddenly froze.

Pointing to a dark hole right next to the trunk, which apparently led into a cave, Harry explained, "This passageway leads to the Shrieking Shack." Pulling his wand out of his back pocket, he reached for Ginny's hand. "Come on, I wonder if Sirius is already there."

He led her to the trunk and stepped into the darkness of the passage. "Lumos."

Ginny followed him, her own wand in her hand. "Lumos!"

After walking in silence for a while in the dim lit passageway she heard Harry call out, "We'll be right there. Watch out, there are stairs leading up to the shack."

In the light of her wand, she could see Harry walking up some steps and pushing open a trapdoor. Ginny followed him. When she reached the top of the stairs, she looked around. "So that's the place you met Sirius the first time?" she asked, after hearing the noise of the closing trapdoor.

"The very same," replied Harry. "And I hope to see him again soon."

He crossed the room and cautiously pushed open the door on the opposite wall. In the light of a candle, they saw a grinning Sirius sitting in a shabby armchair.

"Ah, finally," Sirius greeted the teenagers, getting up and hugging them both warmly. "How are you?" he asked, and continued without waiting for an answer, "sit down, sorry, it's a bit cramped here." He looked around. Raising his hands apologetically, he added, "and a bit dirty, too. But at least there are two chairs for you."

Ginny skeptically eyed the wobbly chair. It made a suspicious creaking noise when she warily sat down. Cautiously she leaned back and inspected her surroundings. This was the place where Harry met Sirius for the first time. Well, if you don't count the occasions when Sirius had been in his Animagus form. The room was, as probably the whole hut, dusty and not very spacious. A few pieces of furniture stood along the walls, most of them partially damaged. They had probably already witnessed the times when the Marauders had used the hut. It was one of the places where Harry, Ron and Hermione had experienced their adventures. She got goosebumps when she realized that she was part of these adventures now as well. But were they really adventures? Now that she was here with Harry, it didn't feel like an adventure at all. It was about helping Harry and getting rid of Tom once and for all, and she was determined to play her part. She was so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't even noticed when Sirius pulled a wooden box out of his pocket and was about to open it.

"Look, this is the new mirror Remus made last week." Sirius carefully took the mirror out of the box and held it up. "All we have to do is synchronize it with your mirrors now. I hope you didn't forget your mirrors?" He gave the teenagers an expectant look.

Ginny grinned at Sirius and wordlessly pulled the wooden box with her communication mirror out of her bag. A look at Harry confirmed that he also carried his mirror with him.

"Very well," Sirius exclaimed. "Put your mirrors on the table here." He pointed to a small round table that stood in a corner, covered with all kinds of filth. He made the rubbish disappear with a movement of his wand and put his mirror in the middle of the table.

As Ginny and Harry had placed their mirrors next to the other, Sirius pulled a worn-looking notebook out of his pocket. "We were lucky that our furry friend didn't throw away his notebook. The new mirror was finished in no time."

"Did he make a few more mirrors?" Ginny asked curiously.

Sirius looked at her with an insulted expression. "Of course. You never know when you need a spare mirror."

Sirius flipped through the notebook and looked up when he'd found the right page. "Ah yes. It says we all have to put the mirrors on top of each other." He stacked the mirrors onto a pile and looked back into the notebook. "Hmm, hmm, hmm ... Oh yeah, that's all very easy," he muttered, pulled his wand and tapped the mirror on the top, muttering, "speculum inter se componantur".

The stack of mirrors briefly glowed in a green light. Sirius looked pleased at the two teenagers. "That's it. Let's give it a try."

The three of them took their mirrors and tried to make contact, at first two-point connections and then all three at the same time. In the end, they put their mirrors back into their wooden boxes, looking very satisfied.

"Well, so far, so good," Sirius mumbled, dropping back into the chair. "Let's get to the unpleasant part, then, the Horcruxes."

Ginny sat down in her chair and looked at Harry as he asked, "What did you find out?"

"A bit, but not that much," Sirius replied. "I've been concentrating on this ritual, which allows pieces of a soul spread out in several Horcruxes to be merged back together." He gave them a pensive gaze and went on when he saw they were listening attentively, "you two already know that a very powerful wizard is needed to perform this ritual. I've talked to your brother about it, Ginny, and Bill is quite confident that he, as a curse breaker, is able to perform the ritual."

Ginny looked pleased at Sirius. "I'm glad that Bill agreed to help us. He knows about Dark Magic like nobody else." Harry nodded in agreement.

"Yes, I'm glad, too," Sirius confirmed. "I took Bill to the island last week. He has access to the books in the cottage anytime now. If it weren't for Bill, we'd probably have to ask Dumbledore to perform the ritual. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Dumbledore and I trust him, but somehow, I've got the feeling he is hiding something from us. That's why I'd like to have a trump card up my sleeve for when the time comes that we need to know what he knows, but he doesn't want to tell us."

"I'm not sure, but I think you're right," Harry replied pensively. "I wanted to ask Dumbledore if we could help with the research on Horcruxes because finally, it was us who had found the books. But every time Dumbledore sees me from a distance, he suddenly disappears into thin air. I've got the feeling he's avoiding me."

"It's probably because he's afraid Voldemort has a connection with you, and that he could use you to spy on the Order." Sirius shook his head in annoyance. "That's what he told me back in August when I talked to him for the first time. Such nonsense. As long as he doesn't tell us what he knows, we won't tell him anything about the ritual."

"Exactly," Ginny looked at the other two. "I'm with you. With six sneaky brothers, I've learned that a little bit of blackmail is always helpful to get what you want."

"How are we going to destroy the Horcruxes?" Harry asked with a grave look. "Even if we've merged all them, Voldemort would still have one Horcrux. At some point, we need to destroy it." After a moment of consideration, he added, "Hoping, he won't create any new ones."

"In the Family Journal, Regulus has pointed out that Fiendfyre would destroy Horcruxes," Sirius replied. "Though, it's quite dangerous to play around with Fiendfyre."

"I could go down into the Chamber of Secrets and fetch the Basilisk fangs," Harry suggested.

"That would be an option." Sirius nodded affirmatively.

Ginny gave Harry a thoughtful look. "I'm coming with you."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked in surprise, raising his eyebrows.

"Absolutely," confirmed Ginny in a firm voice, suppressing the shudder that was running down her back.

"As you wish." Harry looked at her thoughtfully. After a moment he gave her a crooked smile. "I think I understand. I'd made the same decision."

"Then there's something else," Sirius broke in. "I've read through a passage in the Family Journal several times, just to be sure. I also let Bill read it, and he agreed with me."

Ginny stared expectantly at Sirius while Harry uttered, "What is it?"

Sirius waited a moment before he leaned forward, starring first into Harry's eyes and then into Ginny's. " It takes a few drops of Voldemort's blood to merge his soul pieces."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **AN:** If you want to know what happened with the Nargle on Ginny's fifth birthday, and what Luna talked about on the Hogwarts Express, you should read my one-shot "Chasing Gnats". Of course, there's no need to read this silly little one-shot to understand this story. On the other hand, it's only 1k words, so it wouldn't hurt.


	6. Chapter 6: Down in the Chamber

**Friday, October 13th, 1995**

Harry was seething with anger as he stormed out of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. It was bad enough that they learned practically nothing in that class but they'd spent hours after hours reading about the theory of defensive curses. In recent weeks, Umbridge had expatiated again and again that lies would poison the life in the wizarding world. Attention seeking liars would try to spread their lies to terrorise the wizarding society. The worst of it was that she'd looked Harry in the eyes the whole time. Harry was relieved when the last class of the day finally was over.

As promised, he had remained calm and ignored Umbridge deliberate provocations. When the lesson was over, however, he couldn't stand it anymore. He got up and stormed out of the classroom. He ran up the stairs into an abandoned classroom on the fourth floor. He opened a window to let the cold October air into the room, took some deep breaths and tried to calm down.

His patience was at the end. They had to fight against the lies about Voldemort's return. But how? Dumbledore was of no help. He'd shunned Harry for weeks and let Umbridge do whatever she wanted at Hogwarts. Sirius couldn't help him either. After all, he was still a wanted man, hunted by the Ministry. Harry let his eyes wander about the Hogwarts grounds, wondering if he would ever find a normal life, a life without lies and dark wizards. When the cold air made him shiver, he closed the window and slowly made his way up to the Gryffindor Tower. The thought of Ginny waiting there for him made him smile. The first smile since he'd seen her at breakfast.

When he entered the common room, he looked around to find Ginny. She sat on her usual place at the window and waved at him.

As he sat down at her table, she smiled at him. "Where have you been? I was worried when Ron and Hermione came back without you. They said you ran off and they didn't know where you are and refused to say more."

Harry leaned forward, resting his head into his hands. He knew he'd better tell her the truth right away. She would understand him.

Softly, he started after a while, "Umbridge almost won today." He ran his hands through his hair and continued, "Throughout the whole lesson, she repeated again and again that someone is spreading lies about Voldemort's return, looking right at me all the time. I was lucky the lesson was over when I lost it, otherwise, I would have ... I don't know what I would have done. I just can't stand it anymore. I just know, I can't go on like that."

"Harry, I ... eh, we need to talk?" Ginny said carefully.

"About what?" Harry mumbled into his hands.

"I spoke to Luna recently," Ginny answered slowly.

"What does Luna have to do with it?" Harry slowly leaned back, giving Ginny a dumbfounded look.

"I asked Luna if she would conduct an interview with you, an interview where you can tell her what exactly happened. Luna had asked her dad and he agreed to publish the interview in The Quibbler."

"Ginny, how could you ...?" Harry started visibly annoyed but was interrupted by Ginny's determined voice.

"Harry, of course, we won't do anything you don't agree. Luna said, yes, she'd do the interview with you. But if you don't want to, we forget about it. It's as simple as it this."

As Harry slowly shook his head, running his hands through his hair, Ginny added earnestly, "Please, think about it, and let me know if you agree. If you don't, we'll forget it and I won't bring it up again."

Harry thoughtfully looked at Ginny, trying to understand what she was aiming for. He took a deep breath. "I'll think about it." There were so many thoughts buzzing around in his head. How should he know if such an interview would be the right thing to do? Noticing Ginny's worried look, he gave her a crooked smile and said softly, "Thank you."

Ginny looked at him in surprise. "For what?"

"Thank you for worrying about me."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Sunday, October 15th, 1995**

Sunday morning met Harry in a good mood, sitting next to Ginny and his friends at the breakfast table in the Great Hall. The good mood had its reasons. All Saturday afternoon, he had explored the castle together with Ginny. It was amazing how many places they knew, the other hadn't ever seen before. In order to memorize these places, they'd taken extended snogging sessions. Harry grinned at this memory. More than once he'd claimed that he'd never seen the place before. Why should he miss the opportunity to get better memories of this place with Ginny's help? However, he had no guilty conscience about it. In fact, he'd suspected that Ginny had exactly had the same idea.

Harry was torn out of his musings by the arrival of the Daily Prophet. Since Hermione sat opposite of him, he immediately got a glimpse of the headline.

 **Potter...attention seeking liar...return of Who-must-not-be-named.**

"Harry, what's up?" Ginny asked worriedly when Harry stiffened.

"The Daily Prophet," Harry muttered. "It's almost the same words Umbridge used."

"Oh, Harry," Ginny responded worriedly, put her hand on his knee and squeezed it. "Do you want to go flying after breakfast. The fresh air will be good for you. You know that, right now, we can't do anything about it."

"No, Ginny, you were right before," replied Harry. "We can do something about it. We need to do something about it. I'll do the interview with Luna. The Daily Prophet is telling lies, but we must tell the truth. There is no other way. We can only hope someone believes me. Maybe after reading the interview, more people will see the truth. We need to fight back."

Ginny beamed happily at him. "I'll go and ask Luna to meet us. I'll be back in a minute."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

They met with Luna in the afternoon in the abandoned classroom where Harry had stormed to after Umbridge's class.

Ron had apologized because he wanted to meet Seamus for a game of chess. Hermione, however, had insisted in attending the interview, and since both Harry and Ginny had no objections, the three of them headed off to their meeting with Luna right after lunch.

They'd left the door ajar to allow Luna to find the right room. Harry and Hermione were about to set up a table and a few chairs when Ginny, standing guard at the door, called, "Luna's coming."

Luna stepped through the door. Smiling dreamily, she looked around. "Oh, you made yourself quite comfortable here."

Harry rolled his eyes. "It can't be more comfortable than in the Ravenclaw Common Room."

"Oh, the furnishings certainly not, but without a doubt the company. I'm glad to see you again, Harry Potter." She beamed at him.

"Before I forget it, Ginevra." Luna turned to Ginny. "Thank you for keeping your promise." Ginny blushed slightly.

"What promise?" Harry asked, interested.

"Oh, nothing ..." Ginny interjected.

"Oh, yes, Ginevra," Luna interrupted her. "I'm sure it's been hard for you to give away your beloved Harry Potter doll."

Ginny blushed, completely embarrassed.

"Of course, I'll give it back to you, in case you and Harry..."

Slightly blushing as well now, Harry interjected, "Don't worry Luna, as far as it concerns me, the doll belongs to you now."

A sudden thought crossed his mind. Giving Luna a questioning look, he asked, "What does someone your age need a doll for?"

Dreamily, Luna looked Harry into the eye. "You don't want to know, Harry Potter."

Harry looked at Luna, amused.

"Enough of that," Ginny interrupted the embarrassing discussion. "We're not here for a silly doll."

Harry loved the sight of the embarrassed Ginny so much. He was just about to tease her a bit more when she gave him a stern look. "Potter, forget it!"

"Okay," Harry grinned. "Let's talk about it in the evening."

Luna turned back to the door again, muttering something incomprehensible while waving her wand.

Obviously satisfied with the result, she turned back to her friends and explained, "We don't want to be disturbed, are we?"

"Yeah, let's finally talk about important things," Ginny agreed.

Without further ado, the four took their seats at the table and listened to Harry's story about the events on the day of the third task at the Triwizard tournament.

Throughout the whole interview, Luna steadily stared at Harry, taking notes on her notebook without even looking. When Harry finished his tale, he looked at Luna, waiting for her to ask questions.

"Do you need anything else from me?" He finally asked when he couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"Voldemort has your blood in his veins?" Luna asked.

"Um, well ..." Harry looked up to Ginny for help. But Ginny slowly turned her gaze to Luna, obviously thinking about something.

"Well," Harry went on, suddenly having the strange feeling that the answer to that question was important. "That's right" Harry nodded. "Yes, he has my blood in his veins."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Hermione interjected.

Suddenly the Knut dropped. Voldemort's blood was his blood. He looked at Ginny, who was just gasping for air, looking at him with wide eyes. She'd also understood the implications of Luna's question. They had to tell Sirius.

"Well, time will tell," Harry answered Hermione's question, trying to suppress his excitement. Turning back to Luna, he continued, "Either way, I'd prefer if you don't mention my blood in the article. When I think about it, you'd best not mention blood at all."

"As you wish," Luna said unperturbed. "But I want to mention the names of the Death Eaters you recognized in the graveyard. Is it okay for you?"

"Good point," Harry answered. "I take it Malfoy won't like to read his name in The Quibbler, let alone in connection with Voldemort. This alone is a good reason to say yes."

"Who did you recognize anyway, Harry?" Ginny asked. "You only told me about Malfoy so far."

"As I said," Harry began, "I didn't see all the faces because they were all wearing silver masks. Voldemort had addressed a few of his cullies by name, and I also recognized Malfoy's voice. You'll never forget his slimy voice if you heard it once. Then there were the fathers of Crabbe and Goyle. Then there was Walden McNair. Voldemort made fun of him because he's executing magic creatures now. Then there was a man called Avery. As far as I know, he is the son of a former schoolmate of Voldemort. Yeah, and of course Peter Pettigrew, and Voldemort himself. There were more Death Eaters there, but I don't know who they were."

"I'm not sure if it's a good idea to mention all the names in the interview," Hermione interjected. "Especially Malfoy can give you a hard time if he wants to. Fudge is in his pocket, and Fudge's right-hand, Umbridge, is right here at the school. Does it help us, or does it harm us if we publish the names?"

"I like the idea to cause a bit trouble among our enemies," Ginny countered, her eyes wandering over those present. "In the end, it doesn't matter if we publish the names or not, they won't leave Harry alone."

"Yes." Harry nodded in agreement. "You're right. We should publish the names. Even if no one believes me, they will watch them more closely, and there will always be a glimmer of doubt left. They are not going to like it."

"Thank you, Harry. With this question out of the way, I think we are through," Luna said, her dreamy smile gracing her face again. "I'll send the interview to my father right away. He wants to publish it in the next edition of The Quibbler. "

"When is the next edition due?" Hermione asked.

"Next Sunday," Luna replied. "My dad promised to send me a preprint for you on Saturday."

With that Luna got up, waved goodbye to her friends, cancelled her protection charms for the classroom door and disappeared.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Later that evening, after dinner, Harry met with Ginny to head up to the Astronomy Tower. They wanted to talk to Sirius undisturbed and the tower had been their best guess for a deserted place on a chilly October night. They had donned their Weasley jumpers under their robes, so they wouldn't catch a cold.

When they reached the entrance to the tower, Harry opened the door to the stairwell and let Ginny enter. He locked the door then caught up with her.

Ginny walked ahead on the narrow steps of the spiral staircase. When she reached the top, she opened the heavy metal door by pushing her shoulder against it. Slowly, she stepped out onto the platform and looked around. "The coast is clear," she called, walking over to the parapet to let her eyes wander about the Hogwarts grounds.

Harry stepped behind Ginny, wrapped his arms around her shoulders and took a deep breath of the flowery scent of Ginny's hair.

"It looks beautiful," Ginny murmured softly.

"It does," Harry agreed.

For a long time, they stood silently together, admiring the view of the castle's nocturnal surroundings. A light breeze blew in their faces and made them forget the unpleasant things for a few minutes.

Down in the dim schoolyard, some Hufflepuffs were playing tag. A little farther away, at the edge of the forest, Hagrid's hut was visible as a dark spot. The hut was unlit because Hagrid was on a mission Dumbledore alone knew where.

"I think we should call Sirius," Harry whispered much later into Ginny's ear.

"Yeah," Ginny admitted. "Time to return to reality."

Harry pulled his mirror out of his pocket and led Ginny to a bench slightly out of the way with a good view at the entry door to the platform.

They snuggled together to stay warm. When they had made themselves comfortable, Harry reached for his wand and tapped the mirror. "Sirius Black," he said quietly but clearly.

They waited a few minutes until the mirror hummed softly and Sirius' face appeared on it.

"Who have we got here?" He beamed at them. "Ah, our lovebirds are having a cosy evening under the stars. I suppose you're up on the Astronomy Tower."

"Oh, are you jealous?" Harry answered with a grin.

"Oh, believe me, Harry. I have enough stars here on this lonely island," Sirius replied. "But I'm definitely envious of your company."

"Thanks, Sirius, but I need to stay here and keep an eye on your favourite godson, so he won't do anything stupid," Ginny joked.

"I don't envy you, herding Pixie's is easier," Sirius snorted.

"Hey, you two! I'll come back later if you want to talk alone." Harry huffed.

"No, stay here," Sirius exclaimed in horror. "You'll get lost in the castle."

"Enough!" Harry exclaimed. "There're important things to discuss."

"I was so glad to see you again, and you're spoiling the fun," Sirius pouted. "Okay, okay, I understand, back to serious business. I also have some important news, but you may start first."

"We had an idea how to get Voldemort's blood," Harry began.

"Oh, great." His godfather looked at him attentively.

"I told you about the resurrection ritual on the graveyard, and that Pettigrew used my blood to resurrect Voldemort." When Sirius nodded, Harry continued, "This means that my blood is running through his veins now, and we think we can, therefore, use my blood for the merging ritual."

Sirius looked thoughtfully. "This sounds plausible. That is unless we need his blood from the time when he created the Horcruxes, but I doubt it. It would mean that we couldn't perform the ritual anymore because this blood most likely isn't available anymore."

Harry's heart almost dropped into his shoes at Sirius' comment. He hadn't considered this possibility. "Er, right..."

"I think it won't be a problem," Sirius tried to reassure him. "Your idea is great. If we'll do it this way, we need to get some of your blood to this damn island. I suppose it has to wait until Christmas. We won't see each other sooner."

"Yes, probably," Harry agreed.

"If I were you, I'd buy the next issue of the Quibbler, Sirius," Ginny interjected. "Your godson gave them an interview."

"Ginny ..." Harry looked at her indignantly.

Ginny squeezed his knee to placate him. "I think Sirius should read the article."

"If he wants to," Harry replied. "I'm very curious about Umbridge's reaction."

"Umbridge? Fudge's Watchdog at Hogwarts?" Sirius asked.

"The very same," Harry confirmed, and told Sirius about his experiences with the vicious woman.

"This doesn't sound good," Sirius said thoughtfully when Harry finished his tale.

"It's definitely not funny," Harry confirmed.

"Yeah, please keep me informed about her," Sirius requested.

"Will do. Any news from Dumbledore?" Harry asked. "He hasn't talked to me all term."

"Ah yes. Dumbledore," Sirius replied. "That's the point I wanted to talk to you about. When I went through the books on the Horcruxes with Bill this week, he told me that the Order is guarding something in the Ministry. Dumbledore apparently suspects that Voldemort is interested in something and wants to steal it."

"There are even shift schedules for all Order members assigned to stand guard, but nobody knows what they are really guarding. Dumbledore didn't tell anyone." Sirius explained. "That's all that Bill was able to tell me, and he only knew it because he's one of the guards."

"Personally, Dumbledore didn't say anything to me," Sirius went on. "Well, for obvious reasons, I can't turn up at the Ministry to watch over whatever it is. I'm pretty sure Dumbledore doesn't want me to know that something is being guarded. However, since Dumbledore keeps it so secret, I suspect it has something to do with you, Harry. That's why I wanted you to know about it. Of course, I'll try to find out more about it."

Ginny had been following the conversation silently all the time. She looked up at Harry. "This doesn't sound good."

"No, it doesn't," Harry agreed. "Seems, more trouble is searching for me."

"We'll keep watching things and continue researching the Horcruxes. Don't worry about it for the time being." Sirius tried to soothe the two of them.

"I'll try," Harry agreed with a doubtful look. Glancing over at Ginny, he said, "In the meantime, we'll go down into the Chamber to fetch the Basilisk fangs. We'll need them to destroy the Horcruxes when we have them all together."

"I'll definitely go with you," Ginny said, looking him in the eye.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked reluctantly.

"Yeah," Ginny answered without hesitation.

Harry was relieved when Ginny nodded. Several times, they had talked briefly about going down into the Chamber. He was glad she didn't cave in now that the plan was becoming more concrete.

"Okay, then I'll leave you two lovebirds alone," Sirius interrupted. "But leave your clothes on. It's cold up there on the tower at night."

"Please, spare us the details why you know that," Harry responded quickly.

"Okay, okay, I see. It's time for your old godfather to say goodbye. Good night, you two."

"Good night," the two said, giggling as Sirius's face disappeared and the mirror went out again.

"Let's stay a bit longer." Ginny looked at Harry.

"Yeah, it's so peaceful up here," Harry answered, pulling Ginny closer.

Watching the twinkling stars in the cloudless sky and listening to Ginny's steady breathing, Harry felt happy and content. Sitting in a sheltered corner, he enjoyed the light, pleasant breeze stroking his face. He resolved to come up here with Ginny more often.

Startled, Harry blinked hard and opened his eyes. He was shivering from the cold air. Apparently, he'd fallen asleep. He looked over to Ginny, who was snuggled up to him with a satisfied smile on her face, sleeping. Chilly as he was, he'd have loved to watch her a bit longer.

Smiling, Harry nudged Ginny on the shoulder. "Wake up, Ginny. We have to go back."

Confused, Ginny sat up, rubbing her eyes in amazement. She grinned sheepishly at Harry. "I guess I fell asleep in your arms."

"I won't take it personally," Harry stroked her cheek. "But we'd better get back."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Friday, October 20th, 1995**

After a long day, Harry was looking forward to the weekend and the upcoming dinner. The double classes Potions with Snape in the morning had lasted forever but, luckily, Snape had been in a good mood today and had refrained from provoking Harry with insulting remarks.

Umbridge's classes in the afternoon had been quite the opposite. Harry once again had to struggle to keep his anger under control while Umbridge was constantly bugging him with her lies and her useless lectures on the theory of defensive magic. In the hope of provoking Harry, she had repeatedly given him an expectant grin, but to her disappointment, he had managed to stay calm. Now he was glad it was finally the weekend.

He headed down the stairs from his dorm to the common room and was pleased to see Ginny at her usual table at the window overlooking the Black Lake.

"Hi, Gin. What's the matter? You're in a bad mood?" Harry asked as he sat down at Ginny's table, noticing her sullen expression.

She smiled at him. "It's already getting better."

"What happened? Snape? Malfoy?" Harry asked worriedly.

"Nope, none of those." Ginny shook her head, and added on Harry's questioning look, "Ron happened."

"You and Ron; you two argue quite a lot." Harry took her hand in his, brushing the back of her hand with his thumb.

"Not as often as it seems," Ginny averred. "Only when he's trying to tell me what to do and what not to do. Don't get me wrong, Harry. I love Ron, I really do. After all, he's my brother. But there're times I feel the urgent need to strangle him. But that's normal. After all, he is my brother."

"That's strange." Harry pondered Ginny's remark. "I often feel the same about Hermione. Don't get me wrong, I really like her, but sometimes I could strangle her as well. She can be a real pain in the neck when it comes to homework, or when she's scolding me because I violated another rule only she knows it even exists. Does it mean that Hermione is a kind of a sister to me?"

Ginny chuckled. "Exactly. That's the way older siblings are, you love them to bits, but you'd love to strangle them whenever they're getting on your nerves."

"Are you coming down for dinner with me?" Harry asked, hoping to improve her mood.

"I don't know." Ginny folded her arms. "I'm just not in the mood to endure a crowd."

"Okay, then let's just head to the kitchen," Harry suggested.

Ginny's eyes lit up. "That's one of your better suggestions." She grinned happily.

"Oh, I always make good suggestions, you just don't appreciate them," Harry complained.

"Forget it, Potter, the best suggestions are always mine."

"Hey..." Harry tried to protest, but Ginny cut him short, "Just tell me, who always suggests looking for an empty broom cupboard? If it were up to you, we would always be cuddling in front of the fire."

"What's wrong with cuddling in front of the fire?" Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Nothing. But cuddling in a broom cupboard is much more exciting, isn't it? You always seem to enjoy it more when Ron isn't watching you." Ginny grinned at him.

"Okay, then I suggest we're looking for an empty broom cupboard after dinner." Harry waggled his eyebrows, blushing.

"Oh, Potter, two brill suggestions within 5 minutes." Ginny giggled. "It seems hope isn't lost yet." Getting up, she grabbed Harry's hand. "Let's go. I'm starving."

Hand in hand they made their way down to the kitchens, occasionally bumping their shoulders and grinning at each other.

They slipped through the kitchen door and looked about. Dinner in the Great Hall was just beginning, and the house-elves were obviously busy. They sat down at a small table in a far corner of the kitchen when they heard a scream.

"Oh, Harry Potter, Sir. I is happy to see you here." Dobby bowed excitedly. "How can I help the great Harry Potter and his Miss Wheezy?"

"Hello, Dobby, I'm also happy to see you," Harry answered a bit embarrassed. "Can you please bring us something to eat. We are hungry, but we don't want to eat with all the noise in the Great Hall tonight."

"I is happy to bring the great Harry Potter and his girl something to eat," Dobby cried out. "Do you want something of everything, or something special?"

Harry gave Ginny a questioning look. "What do you want?"

"Hmm," Ginny pondered for a moment. "Shepherd's pie and a chocolate pudding for dessert would be nice, plus a glass of iced pumpkin juice."

"Shepherd's pie and chocolate pudding for Miss Wheezy," Dobby confirmed euphorically. "And for Harry Potter, Sir?"

"Shepherd's pie sounds good," Harry replied. "and for dessert, I'd like chocolate profiteroles. And, of course, a glass of iced pumpkin juice."

"Dobby is hurry. Dobby will be serving dinner for Harry Potter, Sir and his Miss Wheezy soon." ... And with a quiet pop, the house-elf disappeared.

Harry took Ginny's hand and gave her a thoughtful gaze. "Ginny, have you ever heard of some mysterious room here at Hogwarts?"

Ginny looked at him, questioningly. "What sort of room?"

"A room that pops up when it's needed," Harry explained. "Do not laugh now, but Dumbledore once said that there are secrets at Hogwarts, not even he as the Headmaster knows about. Once, when he wandered the castle in the night and was in the need of a loo, he found a strange room filled with chamber pots of every imaginable size and shape, at a place where never has been a room before, not even a door."

"Hmm, that's odd," Ginny replied thoughtfully, smiling at Dobby, who was just serving their dinner. "I remember Fred and George boasting about their pranks. Once, when they needed to hide from Filch a door opened out of nowhere. They hid from Filch in the room. Filch didn't find them. They said they thought Filch couldn't even see the door of the room."

Listening with interest, Dobby placed the Shepherd's pie laden plates, the desserts, and the pumpkin juice on the table. "Miss Wheezy Wheezies found the Come and Go Room then," he explained with an air of importance.

"What's the Come and Go Room?" Harry asked astonished.

"House-elves call it 'Come and Go Room', wizards call it 'place where everything is hidden' or 'Room of Requirement', but not many wizards know about the Come and Go Room," Dobby explained. "The Come and Go Room is on the seventh floor, opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. House-elves can go directly into the room. Wizards must walk past the area of the door three times, thinking of what they need, to make the Come and Go Room appear."

Ginny looked at Harry with a mischievous smile.

"What are you thinking about?" Harry asked her, puzzled.

"Sounds even more useful than a broom cupboard," she chuckled.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Monday, October 23rd, 1995**

"Are you ready?" Harry asked, giving Ginny a scrutinizing look.

"Yeah," Ginny replied, adjusting the last pieces of her clothing.

They had extensively taken advantage of the Room of Requirements for the first time, and they were excited. Unobserved by the prying eyes of nosy brothers or fellow students, the snogging had become a bit out of control. They still had all their clothes on, however, not in the condition they wanted to show up in public.

After all the buttons were closed and the shirts were neatly smoothed, Harry checked the Marauder's map to see if the coast was clear. He was just about to announce that they could head back to the Gryffindor Tower when he noticed Luna sitting in Umbridge's office. He glanced at his watch. It was already half past nine.

Bewildered, he showed Ginny the map. "Look, what's Luna doing so late in Umbridge's office?"

"I don't know either," she replied. "We don't have Umbridge's classes together with the Ravenclaws, so I didn't see her after lunch."

"We need to check on her," Harry insisted. "Let's head down to Umbridge's office and wait there for her. I have a very bad feeling. Yesterday the edition of the Quibbler with the interview came out, and today Luna is sitting in the office of that evil woman. That can't be a coincidence."

Luckily, they had brought Harry's Invisibility Cloak with them, just in case they missed curfew and had to hide on their way back to Gryffindor Tower.

Harry threw the cloak over them both, opened the door so they could step into the floor together. Arm in arm and in lockstep, they silently marched down to Umbridge's office, worried about what had happened to Luna.

When they reached the office, they hid in an alcove not far from the door. This way, they had a good view of the office door and were out of the way of random passersby.

As they waited there, invisibly and intimately entwined, Harry suddenly became aware of Ginny's closeness. He looked at her but could not see much in the dim light under the cloak. Slowly he leaned forward and gently kissed her. Just as he wanted to deepen the kiss, the door of Umbridge's office opened and Luna stepped out.

There was nothing left of Luna's otherwise so dreamy look. It had given way to a hard expression that didn't bode well. The tears rolling down her cheek were the complete contrast to her hard expression.

When Luna started to make her way down the hall toward the Ravenclaw Tower, Harry grabbed Ginny's hand, gently pulling her with him to follow Luna.

When they had turned around the next corner, Harry called, "Luna, wait."

Startled, the girl turned around, searching for the origin of the voice.

"It's us. Harry and Ginny," Ginny explained as Harry removed the cloak to reveal them.

"What are you doing here?" Luna asked, obviously surprised.

"We could ask the same to you. We happened to pass by here," Harry said.

Grimacing, he pointed to her right hand. "What happened to your hand?"

Luna looked at them both, obviously considering her answer.

"What happened, Luna?" Ginny asked forcefully.

Apparently coming to a decision, Luna began reluctantly, "I got a week's worth of detention from Umbridge."

"Why?" Ginny asked with interest.

"For spreading lies." Luna looked Harry in the eyes. "And before you feel guilty, Harry Potter, I think we've done the right thing. There is no need to blame yourself. "

Harry glared at Luna. "She punished you for the interview?"

"It doesn't matter," Luna explained calmly.

"But what about your hand?" Harry insisted.

"Oh, Luna," Ginny screamed. She stepped toward Luna and carefully raised her hand to examine it.

"I must not tell lies." She read the blood-encrusted line.

"Umbridge made you write with a Blood Quill?" she asked, horrified. When Luna didn't answer, she stated, "That's a crime!"

"It doesn't matter," Luna insisted. "Tomorrow it will be gone." She looked at her friends. "Good night, Harry Potter. Good night, Ginevra." She turned and continued walking her way down the hall.

Harry gave Ginny a troubled look. "I think I'll have a long chat with Sirius. We must help her."

In a very depressed mood, the two of them made their way back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Wednesday, October 25th, 1995**

Dinner that Wednesday evening had been a boisterous affair and the highlight of an eventful day that had begun as usual. It had taken a while for the first students to notice that the staff table had been almost deserted through most of breakfast. When Dumbledore had finally arrived, the first early risers had already left the Great Hall. Instead of taking his seat at the staff table, Dumbledore had stepped forward and made the announcement that Professor Umbridge had been suspended, and that her classes had been cancelled for the next days.

During dinner, the students of all houses were still noisily discussing the earlier development, hoping for more news. When Dumbledore finally made his appearance, his announcement that Umbridge would not return to Hogwarts hit the students like a bludger. The news that the Defence Against the Dark Arts classes would be cancelled until a new professor had been found was enthusiastically celebrated by the majority of the students.

Harry had been worried about Luna all day when he hadn't seen her at the Ravenclaw table during breakfast. He'd suspected that Sirius had kept his promise and had told Moody and Tonks that Umbridge was torturing students.

To Harry's relief, Luna had reappeared at lunchtime. When Harry had entered the Great Hall, she was surrounded by her fellow Ravenclaws, bombarding her with questions. It was a very unusual sight since Luna usually sat alone at the table. Unfortunately, it left Harry with no chance to talk to Luna alone. Fortunately, Ginny's first lesson in the afternoon was History of Magic, a class the Gryffindors shared with Ravenclaw, and Ginny had plenty of time to squeeze news out of Luna.

When she got back to the common room, Ginny sat down with Harry, Ron, and Hermione and told them what happened to Luna the evening before. To Luna's surprise, two Aurors had stormed into the office during her detention with Umbridge. They'd interrogated the professor for using a Blood Quill. In the end, the Aurors had arrested Umbridge for possessing and using Dark Objects on a student. They had asked Luna to stand for testimony the next morning. That's why she'd missed breakfast.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

It was late in the evening when the common room finally emptied, and Harry and Ginny could talk to Ron and Hermione in private.

"I'm going down to the Chamber of Secrets with Ginny on Halloween night." Harry looked nervously at his friends. He wasn't sure how they would react. "We need the Basilisk fangs to destroy the Horcruxes, and we think it's important for Ginny to go down into the chamber. It's important for us to do it together."

Hermione sat bent over a book at a table in the common room while Ron sat on the chair next to her, leafing through a Quidditch magazine. Abruptly she looked up and gave Harry an aghast look. "Harry, are you insane? How do you come up with such a stupid idea?"

"The idea is not stupid, Hermione. Just think about it. Actually, we both wanted to ask you two if you wanted to come with us. But if you think the idea is too harebrained, you're welcome to go to bed when we both go down into the chamber," Harry said in a firm voice.

"That's out of the question," Ron interjected. "I'm in. The last time we were there, the tunnel collapsed and you had to go on your own. This time I want to see the chamber."

"Ron, you're insane to help those two with this nonsense," Hermione protested.

"It's not nonsense," Ginny replied patiently. "We talked about it with Sirius and Bill. Bill is not happy with our decision, but he supports us. Who else should do it, Hermione? Neither Sirius nor Bill can suddenly wander about the castle. We've been down there before, and this time it should even be safe."

"Fine," Hermione grumbled. "I can't let you go down there alone. Someone has to watch over you." She shook her head thoughtfully. "But we shouldn't go on Halloween night."

"Why not?" Harry asked in amazement. "With all the excitement on Halloween's Eve, nobody will miss us."

"And that's the point. I think someone will notice if all four of us aren't at the Feast. It's too dangerous to sneak about the castle at night, remember. We only have one Invisibility Cloak for the four of us."

"I think Hermione has a point there," Ginny said thoughtfully. "We should go on the Saturday before Halloween, right after breakfast. Or, if we have Quidditch practice, right after lunch. Nobody will miss us during the daytime and we can freely walk about the castle without attracting attention."

"'Kay," Harry said reluctantly. "It's Saturday, then. The earlier, the better."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Saturday, October 28th, 1995**

On Saturday afternoon, Harry was having lunch with his friends in the Great Hall. Freshly showered and a bit exhausted after the Quidditch training in the morning, he grabbed the last roast beef sandwich from the platter before it disappeared to be replaced with a fully laden new platter.

"Ah, ham sandwiches," Ron moaned happily, filling his plate.

Harry smiled at Ginny, who was apparently starving after Katie's extra demanding Chaser formations workout. They had just returned from the Owlery because Ginny wanted to borrow Hedwig to send her mother a greeting card for her 45th birthday coming Monday. Of course, they had used the few moments alone for other things as well and had just come back in time for lunch.

Hermione interrupted Harry's musings. "We'll meet at one o'clock in the common room," she announced. "Harry, you need to bring your Invisible Cloak with you and go ahead with Ron. You two need to wait under the cloak in front of the girl's loo on the second floor. It would be too conspicuous if someone would see the two of you heading into a girls' loo. You'll follow me when I go into the loo with Ginny. But you need to wait until I've checked that Myrtle is not there." When Harry nodded in agreement, she went on, "You remember how to get into the chamber from there?"

Harry nodded, grabbing a ham sandwich. "You gathered all the things we want to take with us?"

Hermione rolled her eyes, taking a deep breath and shaking her head. "What do you think I did this morning when the three of you have had your fun?"

"Oi, Mione," complained Ron, swallowing the last bite. "Quidditch isn't just fun, it's a serious matter!"

"Sorry for the stupid question," Harry interjected to prevent a quarrel between Ron and Hermione. He got up and said, "I'll go fetch the cloak and my broom."

"What do you need the broom for?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"Somehow, we need to get out again," Harry explained with a sweeping wave of his hand. "I doubt that Fawkes will show up again to help us out this time." Turning to the exit, he nodded his head towards Ron. "Don't forget to bring your broom, too."

"Wait, I'll come with you," Ginny called out, washing down the last remnants of her sandwich with a glass of pumpkin juice. Hand in hand, the two left the Great Hall and made their way up to the Gryffindor Common Room.

On the stairs, Harry stopped for a moment and looked at Ginny. "You're nervous, aren't you?"

"Mmm." Ginny nodded visibly uneasy. "But it's something I have to do. I think the nerves are more from anticipation than fear of going back there."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked in surprise.

Ginny nodded. "Without Tom, the place can't be half as scary as it was the last time."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Half an hour later, Harry and Ron were waiting outside the door to the girls' loo on the second floor. The Invisibility Cloak was barely large enough to hide them both when they stood with their legs bent. It took a few minutes until the sound of footsteps announced the arrival of the girls.

They stopped for a moment when they reached the door, listening. There were no suspicious noises in the hallway, and Hermione cautiously turned the doorknob, opened the door a crack and glanced inside. When nothing happened, she slipped through the door. Moments later, she poked her head through the crack of the door, whispering, "The coast is clear; come in."

Harry nudged Ron lightly and nodded toward the door. The two crept over and slipped through the half-opened door. Harry pulled the Invisibility Cloak over their heads as soon as he heard the noise of the closing door.

Harry strode over to the sinks to find the one with the engraved snake. "Here it is," he muttered. Turning to his friend, he asked, "Are you ready?"

When they all nodded without hesitation, Harry turned back to the sink. Taking a few deep breathes, he concentrated for a moment, before hissing in Parseltongue, "Open."

With a loud creaking noise, the opening of the drain widened and made room for the upper end of a slide whose other end was hidden somewhere in the dark behind the next bend.

"Ron, you're going down last." As Ron nodded, Harry added, "Don't forget your broom." He slipped onto the slide and slid down into the darkness.

After a short time, he lost track of the number of turns he'd already slipped down. As the slope decreased and the speed slowed, he drew his wand, muttering, "Lumos."

Before looking about, Harry quickly stepped aside to get out of the way of Ginny or Hermione, whoever would arrive next. Only moments later, Ginny appeared in the light of his wand.

Reaching the upper end of the slide, she stood up and stepped aside. Looking about, she said, "I can't remember what it looked like down here."

"I remember vaguely only," Harry admitted. Nodding his head to Hermione, who was just coming down the chute, he continued, "I remember all the dust and the many small bones on the floor."

When Ron finally jumped off the slide, Harry turned to the tunnel passage ahead. "I think we need to head in this direction. You better switch your lights on."

After he heard his friends muttering their "Lumos," Harry set off. Silently, they walked down the tunnel for a few minutes until they stood in front of a large pile of rocks that had obviously fallen from the ceiling and blocked the way.

"Yeah, it's the right way." Harry stopped, pointing to the rocks. "That was Lockhart's doing," he explained to the girls. "We were lucky that Ron's wand was broken, otherwise the git would have erased our memories. Ron cleared the passageway while I was looking for Ginny."

The girls looked around with wide eyes; not scared, but visibly impressed.

"Are you okay, Ginny?" Harry asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied with a crooked smile. "Let's go on. "

One by one, Harry ahead, they crawled through the narrow passageway Ron had cleared years ago.

After the next turn of the tunnel, they passed a giant snakeskin, and for the first time noticed the stench of decay. A few dozen steps later, they were standing in front of a large stone gate, engraved with the images of serpents. The gate was open, and the four of them slowly walked into the long, dimly lit Chamber of Secrets.

Cautiously looking around, they walked up towards the statue of Salazar Slytherin, standing at the opposite wall of the chamber.

"Ugh, it reeks terribly down here." Ron choked.

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "Be careful. Over there are the remains of the Basilisk. Right in front of the statue."

Slowly they approached the dead beast. There was not much left except the enormous skin and the horrible odour. To Harry's relief, he saw something white on the floor, reflecting in the light of his wand. The fang of the Basilisk.

He pointed to the spot. "Here's the first fang. Do you have the prepared bags with you, Hermione?"

"Of course, what a question," replied his bushy-haired friend, already searching her pocket.

"But be careful," Harry said worriedly.

"That's the fang you were bitten with, Harry, isn't it?" Ginny asked, visibly shaken.

"Yes, it is," Harry affirmed.

"Oh, Harry," Ginny exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him fiercely.

Harry returned her hug. When he let go and saw her eyes wet with unshed tears, he murmured, "Everything's fine, Gin. We're here and Tom's gone." After a moment, he went on, "At least this version of him."

"I'm just wondering if I've ever thanked you, Harry." Ginny smiled sheepishly.

"That's not important," replied Harry. Giving her a cocky grin, he added, "but if you insist, you can show me your gratitude tonight."

"You can bet your life on that." Ginny grinned in response.

"Oi, you two," groaned Ron. "We're doing all the work here."

Bashfully, they turned back to their friends, who were just levitating the fang of the Basilisk into Hermione's bag.

"Okay," Harry said, walking to the head of the Basilisk. "It looks like another fang already dropped out of the jaw."

Silently, Harry watched Hermione levitate the other fang into the bag, while Ron held it open.

When they were done, he squeezed Ginny's hand. "Let's head back again; I need fresh air."

"Fancy going flying with me later?" Ginny asked, her eyes gleaming in the light of his wand.

"I like the idea," Harry replied. "Could have been mine."

"Dream on, Potter," Ginny said mischievously, squeezing his hand.


	7. Chapter 7: Soul Merging

**Friday, November 3rd, 1995**

Harry glanced at his watch. Still 5 minutes till 10.

The time didn't seem to pass.

He reassured himself that the curtains of his bed were closed, kneaded his pillow into a lump and shoved it against the head of his bed. He leaned against the pillow, trying to find a comfortable position.

Relieved that it was finally 10 o'clock, time to get in contact with Sirius, he drew his wand to put a silencing charm on the bed curtains, took his mirror out of its box…and waited.

"Finally," he muttered as the mirror hummed and Sirius' face appeared. Moments later, the mirror hummed again, the mirror image split, and Ginny's face appeared in the right half.

"Hi, Sirius. Hi, Harry." She waved in the mirror.

"Hi, Ginny. Hi, Sirius," Harry replied. "I wish you a happy birthday, Sirius."

"Happy birthday from me, too," Ginny piped in. "Did you find our birthday present?"

"Hello, you two." Sirius grinned in the mirror. "Thank you so much for the congratulations. Yes, I found your parcel. It's now safely stored away in the cottage, only Bill and I have access to."

"Good to hear," Harry said, relieved.

Harry had taken a nice long walk with Ginny in the late afternoon. Just before dinner, they had walked down to Hagrid's hut to hide the Basilisk fangs between the musty leaves of Hagrid's pumpkin patch. In Hagrid's absence, Professor Grubbly-Plank had harvested the pumpkins for the Halloween feast last week and the rotting remnants of the plants seemed to be a good hiding place.

Sirius had hidden in his Animagus form on the edge of the Forbidden Forest to watch Hagrid's hut. After Harry and Ginny had deposited the fangs, they'd briefly waved in the direction of the forest and went back to the castle. Sirius had fetched the fangs sometime later in the dark.

"Are you back on the island?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, after Molly's birthday party last weekend, I'm glad to be alone here for a few days." Sirius smiled. "The food was fabulous as always, but the endless arguments of a few of the Order members are getting tiresome after a while. I prefer the fresh air here on the island any time."

"I suppose the stock of lamb stew will last for some time," Ginny chuckled.

"Certainly." Sirius made a grumpy face. "But unfortunately, the Haggis has run out."

"Not our fault," Ginny replied, making a grimace. "We didn't touch that stuff."

"Haggis was Regulus's favourite dish at Hogwarts," Sirius said, a shadow suddenly crossing his face. "At least as long as we were in contact. James, however, never liked it." Taking a deep breath, he forced the corners of his mouth up to form a smile. "Anyway, I want to spend an hour reading before I hit the sack, and it's time for your eye-care as well. Good night, you two."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "I'll better go to sleep. Tomorrow is our match against Slytherin." Suddenly, Harry remembered something. "Bugger," he called out. "I should have given you a phial of my blood."

"It's okay, Harry. We said we wanted to wait till Christmas," Sirius replied. "As much as I like Poppy, I'd never send you to her to take blood from you. I'd have Dumbledore on my tail in no time. He'd almost certainly quiz me as to what I need your blood for."

"Yeah, you're right," Harry replied hesitantly. Somehow, he couldn't fight the feeling that it was important to have everything needed to merge the soul pieces in the same place...just in case. "I'm getting tired," he said with a worried look. "Good night, you two."

"Oh, okay. Good night." Sirius' mirror image waved briefly before the mirror went dark.

Harry was just about to put his mirror back into the wooden box when it hummed again. Pleased, Harry grinned into Ginny's smiling face. "Good night, Harry, sleep well." Her face zoomed closer until only her lips were visible. Harry heard a smacking noise, and as Ginny leaned back, there was a large imprint of her lips on the mirror image.

"Good night, Ginny. Have nice dreams of me," Harry chuckled. Leaning forward, he kissed Ginny's lip imprint.

Ginny sniggered. "Meet you for breakfast in the common room." She waved him goodbye, and the mirror went dark again.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Sunday, November 5th, 1995**

This Sunday morning, some of the Gryffindors didn't look particularly happy on their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

Gryffindor had defeated Slytherin the day before in the first Quidditch match of the season and taken the lead in the Inter-House-Cup. The victory party had lasted until the wee hours of the morning until Professor McGonagall had disbanded the party under the threat of dire consequences.

Although Harry had held back when he realised that Fred and George had spiked the drinks, the unfamiliar alcohol had finally shown its effects. He glanced over at Ginny, noticing that she apparently was doing better than him.

"Do you remember how we ended up sleeping on the sofa by the fireplace?" Harry asked curiously. McGonagall had found them arm in arm sleeping on the sofa when she'd chased her students into their beds.

Ginny sniggered. "Sometime around midnight you suddenly stared at me with twisted eyes and when you mumbled something that sounded like...dinno bout'ya twin sissr, Gin... I thought it would be better if we sit down on the sofa."

"Twin sister? You're kidding," Harry said suspiciously.

Ginny snorted, "You need to learn to avoid George's spiked drinks, Harry. I only drank from bottles of Butterbeer I opened myself."

"Damn twins," Harry muttered. "You could have warned me."

Ginny gave him an impish grin. "There are things you need to learn by yourself." Squeezing his hand, she added, "After breakfast, you'll feel better."

"Breakfast?" Harry choked. "Oh. Somehow I'm not hungry at all."

"Do you want to get out into the fresh air for a few minutes?" Ginny looked at him worriedly.

"Yes, I'd better..." Harry nodded.

When their friends entered the Great Hall, Harry and Ginny headed to the Entrance Hall and stepped out into the schoolyard.

Harry turned against the wind. Closing his eyes, he let the chilly morning wind blow into his face. Taking a deep breath, he looked around. Stormy gusts of wind shook the bare trees around the castle, whirling up the dried-up leaves on the ground. The air smelled of snow.

When Harry began to shiver, Ginny walked up to him and took him in her arms. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah," Harry said, returning the hug. "It's getting better, the fresh air helps."

Closely entwined they braved the unfriendly autumn weather, silently watching the dance of the leaves. The chilly blows slowly cleared Harry's head. When he shivered again, Ginny released herself from his embrace and grabbed his hand. "We'd better go in. I could use a few bites."

"Yes, we'd better...," Harry agreed.

When they reached the Gryffindor table, they took their seats opposite Ron and Hermione. Hermione had pushed her plate aside, reading the Sunday edition of the Daily Prophet while she absentmindedly chewed a bite of toast.

"Anything interesting?" Ginny asked, pointing to the newspaper.

"Interesting is an understatement," Hermione replied without looking up.

Not interested in the gossip and lies the Daily Prophet usually spread, Harry scanned the table for something that wouldn't turn his stomach. He filled a cup of tea and grabbed a piece of dry toast. Glancing enviously at Ginny's plate of scrambled eggs and bacon, he turned quickly when the smell of fried bacon attacked his nostrils. His eyes caught the headline of the article Hermione was reading.

 **Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, Dolores Umbridge, arrested for using Dark objects on Hogwarts students**

"Erm, Hermione," Harry began. "What's the Prophet writing about Umbridge?"

The students sitting around him suddenly looked with interest at Hermione.

Hermione looked up. "Oh, that's strange." Frowning, she pointed at the newspaper with the half-eaten piece of toast and shook her head contemplatively.

As they all looked at her questioningly, she went on, "It looks like the Daily Prophet is writing the truth here. Apparently, they can't sweep Umbridge's arrest so easily under the carpet. They wrote that the Minister of Magic had sent Umbridge to Hogwarts to uphold educational standards. Well, that's what they'd already written earlier. But they also report that she'd been arrested for possessing a Blood Quill and applying it to Hogwarts students. Luna's name and the interview in The Quibbler aren't mentioned, however. But they also published a statement from Fudge who immediately denied having anything to do with the Blood Quill."

"Yes, of course," Harry snorted. "I hope he won't get away with it so easily. I wonder who managed to publish this article in the Daily Prophet."

On their way back to the Gryffindor Tower, Harry steered Ginny away from their friends. When she looked up at him questioningly, he suggested, "Let's head to the Room of Requirements to get some rest."

"Great idea." Ginny beamed at him.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Monday, December 18th, 1995**

Harry felt happy and satisfied. He sat comfortably on a sofa in the Room of Requirements, watching the flames dancing in the fireplace. Pleased with the world, he looked down at Ginny, cuddling in his arm with her head resting on his shoulder. With a content smile on his face, he pulled her closer.

Today was one of those days they had managed to sneak away from the crowded common room to spend some alone time together in the Room of Requirements. Ever since Dobby had told them about this room, they had tried to meet here at least once a week.

They'd learned to appreciate their alone time and used it to learn together, to talk, or to just sit comfortably together, sharing kisses. A dreamy smile crossed Harry's face. Ginny had been right. This room was much better than any broom cupboard.

"What do you think about the new Potions Professor?" Harry asked.

"I've learned more in the last three weeks with Slughorn than the whole term with Snape," Ginny snorted.

"Me too," Harry admitted. "But with Snape being defence professor, my favourite subject is no fun any more."

"Did you just say you enjoyed Defence with Umbridge more than with Snape?" Ginny gazed at him in disbelief.

"That's not what I said," Harry complained.

"I'm sure you did," Ginny insisted.

"I did not."

"You did."

Harry turned slowly to Ginny, looking into her eyes. A mischievous smile crossed his face when he chuckled, "I did not," tickling her hips with his fingertips.

"Harry!" Ginny squeaked. "Stop it! Now!"

Laughing, Harry took Ginny in his arms. Pulling her closer so she couldn't escape, he whispered in her ear, "I did not," and gave her a noisy wet kiss on her ear.

"Ooh, Haaarryy," Ginny groaned.

Grinning, Harry leaned back. "See, I did not."

Ginny nudged him in the ribs. "You're evil, you know that."

"No, I'm not." Harry shook his head. "But you're bossy."

"I'd call it affectionate," Ginny giggled.

"Merlin. Affectionate?" Harry rolled his eyes and pulled Ginny back into his arm.

"In two days we're heading back home," Harry began but paused. "I often wonder if the soul merging stuff Regulus had discovered will really help us to defeat Voldemort. I'm glad we're going to see Sirius again on Wednesday. It's not just to talk to him about the damn Horcruxes, I'll really be happy to see him again." He took Ginny's hand and squeezed it. "Are you looking forward to seeing your parents?"

"Of course, but I'd rather spend Christmas at the Burrow," Ginny replied.

"Yeah, me, too. I hope your mother still remembers that we are together," Harry said pensively.

Ginny snorted.

"What?" Harry asked, confused.

"Silly," Ginny chuckled. "When Mum writes me a letter, the first thing she asks is if you're doing well, then she writes how the others are doing, and at the end she writes, I hope you're fine, Ginny dear, Love Mum. See, you're always the first."

"Oh," Harry said in amazement. "You never told me about that."

Ginny got up. Straddling his legs, she sat on Harry's lap. Resting her forehead against his and her arms around his neck, she looked him into the eyes. "I can't let your ego grow so big that you can't walk through a door any more, can I?" she giggled, messing his hair.

"Is this part of being affectionate?" Harry gave her a cheeky grin.

"Exactly," Ginny confirmed. Biting her lower lip, she gave him a calculating look. Suddenly a mischievous smile crossed her face, and she leaned forward. "This is the last time we're alone for a while," she whispered in Harry's ear. "If you want to have some fun, we should take advantage of the situation."

Harry stiffened briefly as Ginny's hand slipped under his shirt. It was not the first time their hands had wandered across the bare skin under their shirts. But somehow Harry had the feeling that this time Ginny was more determined, more passionate.

Groaning, he drew a deep breath, as Ginny slid the tip of her tongue into his ear. A tingling sensation ran down his spine as he felt her warm breath, causing him goosebumps all over his body. Mortified, Harry noticed that Ginny's activities had awakened body parts on him. Apparently, Ginny had also noticed it as she began wiggling her bum in Harry's lap, grinning at him mischievously.

"Ginny," Harry groaned. "What are you doing?"

Giggling, she straightened up. Standing on her knees, she grinned down at Harry and pressed his head into the fabric of her shirt. Slowly, she moved her upper body, brushing her breasts against Harry's face. "Come on, Harry, don't be a spoilsport. I doubt we'll get much alone time in the next weeks."

"Ginny, please stop," Harry begged. "If you keep doing this, I can't promise I can stop with just kissing."

Pulling back, Ginny stopped in her movements. Looking into Harrys eyes, she whispered, "I never asked you for such a promise, Harry." She hesitated, biting her bottom lip. "I don't think I'm ready to go all the way, " she muttered, swallowing. "But… I'm really looking forward to having fun with you."

Harry gulped and looked at Ginny. "Are you sure?"

"Very sure," Ginny replied. "But there is no reason to rush things." She gave him a smug smile. "Unless you want to keep on dreaming about it."

"Ginny," Harry groaned, blushing. How did she know what he dreamed of her? Or was she just teasing him?

"Oh, Harry," Ginny chuckled. "You're so easy to read. There's no reason to be embarrassed. Let's just cuddle a bit for now."

Relieved, Harry leaned back and pulled Ginny back into his arms.

"But this doesn't mean you can't kiss me, Harry." Ginny grinned at him. With a giggle she added, "And don't think you're off the hook."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Wednesday, December 20th, 1995**

Harry followed Ron down the corridor of the Hogwarts Express on the way to their compartment. They had already hoisted the girls' trunks up into the luggage racks and had just fetched their own trunks from the platform of the Hogsmeade station.

"Leave some space in the racks," Ginny requested from her window seat. "Luna asked me if she can sit with us."

"Ah, Luna," Harry replied, pushing Ginny's trunk a bit farther toward the window. Ever since their interview, he and Ginny had often sat with Luna in the library. Sitting down next to Ginny, Harry leaned back to recover a bit from carrying the heavy trunks, just in time to hear the rattling of the compartment door announcing the arrival of Luna.

"Hullo, Gryffindors. It's nice of you to save me a seat," the blonde girl said, giving everyone a friendly smile.

"Hi, Luna," Harry greeted her. "Let me help you." Taking a deep breath, he got up and lifted Luna's trunk next to Ginny's in the rack.

"Thank you, Harry. That was very nice of you." Luna smiled. Pulling out a copy of the Quibbler from her bag, she sat down.

Relieved that finally all the luggage was stowed, Harry sat down next to Ginny and put his arm around her. She snuggled closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

Looking up from her Quibbler edition, Luna eyed Ginny. "Ginevra, you were going to tell me if the real Harry Potter is better than the Harry Potter doll."

"It depends on what you need him for, Luna," Ginny deadpanned.

"Oh, of course, how stupid of me," Luna said dreamily, turning back to her magazine.

Confused, Ron stared from Luna to Ginny and back to Luna. "Ehmm," he began, "what exactly do you mean by that?"

Luna gave Ron an amused look. "The Harry Potter doll can't put my trunk on the luggage rack, but I can go to bed with it."

"Bed?" Ron stuttered. "Do you mean..." Frowning, Ron turned to his sister.

"That's none of your business, Ron." Ginny glared at him. "But if you absolutely need to know...no, of course not."

"Good," Ron mumbled, relieved.

"... and you better never ask again," Ginny added conclusively.

Harry was watching the exchange with amusement when the compartment door suddenly opened with a clattering noise. "Oh, noo..., "Harry groaned, turning towards the door, expecting to look into Malfoy's arrogant face.

"I'm sorry, Harry." Neville poked his head through the crack of the door. "Have you got a free seat for me? Romilda and Lavender just came into my compartment to sit together with Seamus and Dean, and frankly, their giggles are getting on my nerves."

"Of course, that's not a problem, Neville." Hermione beamed at the boy.

"Do you know Luna?" Ginny asked, pointing at the blonde Ravenclaw girl.

Neville blushed slightly. "Of course, we sat together on our last ride in September."

"Hello, Neville Longbottom." Luna smiled at the newcomer. "I'm glad to meet you again."

"Ehmm…," stuttered Neville.

"You're always watching me from afar," Luna said to a dumbfounded Neville. "If your Nargle infection has improved, you're welcome to join me for a nice chat at the Ravenclaw table for dinner. In the mornings you always look a bit sleepy."

"Ehmm ... yes," Neville stuttered embarrassed. "I'll think about it."

"I'm looking forward to it, Neville." Giving the boy a dreamy smile, Luna turned back to her magazine.

Pulling Ginny closer, Harry leaned his head against the back of his seat. He was about to doze off when he heard Ginny's voice. "Luna, … any news about Umbridge's trial? You've been summoned to testify as a witness, haven't you?"

Luna looked up, the dreamy smile gone from her face. "The trial is on February 12. Minister Fudge insists on interrogating me personally."

Harry grimaced when he heard that. "Don't let Fudge intimidate you, Luna. He'll accuse you of lying. He tried the same with me."

"That's what I thought, too." Luna nodded. "That's why Dad asked the lawyer of the Quibbler to accompany me."

"Good idea," agreed Harry, leaning back in his seat again. A few minutes later, he was sound asleep with his arm wrapped around Ginny's shoulders, who was also sleeping with a content smile on her face.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

After arriving at Kings Cross Station, Harry and the Weasleys made their way to the local floo network connection point on Platform 9 ¾. Hermione had joined the group as she would spend Christmas with her friends, because her parents had already left London to attend a dentist congress in Cape Town.

Harry and Ginny had lined up at the end of the queue, holding their trunks in one hand, the fingers of their other hands intertwined. When it was their turn, Harry smiled at Ginny, nodding toward the fireplace. "Ladies first."

"See you," Ginny replied. Throwing a pinch of floo powder into the fire, she called 'Number 12, Grimmauld Place' and stepped into the fire. Harry waited a few seconds to give Ginny the chance to step aside before he followed her.

When Harry stumbled out of the fire, he smiled at the ruckus surrounding him. Everyone seemed to shout at the same time. "Heya, we're back! ... Oh, Ron, you've grown! ... Mum, let me breathe!"

Rolling his eyes, he gave Ginny an amused smile. His eyes widened when Mrs Weasley approached him, giving him a bone-crushing hug. "Hello, Harry, it's nice to see you again."

Harry returned the hug hesitantly. "Hello, Mrs Weasley, it's nice to be back." Glancing over her shoulder, Harry saw Ginny beaming at him. Grinning, she shook her head, mouthing, "See, you're always the first."

Releasing Harry from her embrace, Mrs Weasley turned to Ginny. After giving her a heartfelt hug, she gave her daughter a closer look.

"You look wonderful, Ginny. You've grown." Ginny beamed at her mother. Giving her neck a scrutinizing look, Mrs Weasley added, "It seems you have Doxies in your dorm room, Ginny. Go, have a look in the cupboard above the sink. There you'll find a tincture for the Doxie bites on your neck. I'm sure Hermione would be happy to help you to apply the tincture."

Harry blushed and noticed how Ginny became as red as a lobster, stuttering, "Mum, it's ..."

When Mrs Weasley raised her eyebrows, Ginny nodded shortly. "Thank you, Mum!" Giving Harry an accusing look, she marched to the kitchen.

In order to escape the ruckus, Harry grabbed Ginny's trunk and headed up the stairs. He placed the trunk next to her door and headed to his room to put his own trunk away. He was wondering about Sirius' absence. He'd expected him to be present for their arrival.

After putting his trunk on his bed, Harry knocked at Sirius' door. Puzzled that he didn't get an answer, he cautiously opened the door and took a peek inside. The room was empty. That was odd. Sirius had said he would be back from the island the night before. Worried, Harry headed up to the next floor to search for Sirius in Buckbeak's former room. As he found the room empty, he slowly walked over to the window. Leaning on the windowsill, he looked pensively out into the darkness.

Harry frowned when suddenly an idea struck him. Hesitantly, he walked down the hallway to Regulus' room. He knocked and opened the door without waiting for an answer. In the half-dimness of the room, he saw Sirius sitting in the chair at the desk. He stared at a picture of his brother standing on the desk in front of him.

"Hello, Sirius," Harry said hesitantly.

Torn from his thoughts, the man looked up in surprise. "Oh, Harry." Smiling, he got up and gave Harry a hug. "You're already here!"

Visibly pleased about Harry's return, Sirius looked Harry into the eye. "It's good to see you again. Seems I've lost track of time up here."

"You're often up here," Harry said, and it wasn't a question.

"Yes," Sirius replied. "I still can't believe I was so wrong about my brother. I have the feeling I should've fought more for him."

"Sirius, you can't change the past," Harry said insistently. "We should honour his legacy and finish his mission. It'll help you to make peace with him."

"You're probably right." Sirius nodded pensively. With a sad smile, he patted Harry's shoulder. "Let's head down to my room. We need to talk about our plans for the next few days."

Back in Sirius' room, Harry sat down on the bed, waiting for his godfather to take a seat. After silently watching him pace the room for a while, he asked, "What did you plan?"

"I'll leave for the island tomorrow morning. Bill will follow me as soon as he is done at Gringotts. I will prepare everything so we can perform the ritual as soon as Bill arrives."

"Good luck," Harry replied. "I hope, you'll be back for Christmas."

"I hope so. Bill wants to be back the day after tomorrow. Ever since he has a new girlfriend, he barely comes to the island any more." Sirius smirked.

"Bill has a new girlfriend? I doubt Ginny knows about that." The thought that he could tell Ginny news about her family somehow amused Harry.

"You know her." Sirius grinned.

"How should I know her? I don't really know any girls."

"Ginny will be pleased to hear that," Sirius snorted. "It's the girl from France who participated in the tournament. She's working together with Bill for Gringotts now."

"Fleur?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Yes, that's her name," the older man confirmed.

Harry laughed. "Ron will be jealous. He tried to ask her to the Yule Ball last year. I can't wait to tell Ginny."

"But it's Bill's story to tell his family," Sirius exclaimed, raising his finger.

"Yes," Harry replied, "and it's my business to tell Ginny." When Sirius looked at him questioningly, he rolled his eyes. "Seems it's been a while since you had a girlfriend."

"Oh, I didn't realise you've already become henpecked." Sirius grinned teasingly.

"Henpecked, my arse." Harry shook his head. "I just want to have a happy Christmas once in a lifetime, and to hide something like this from Ginny isn't worth the risk."

Sirius looked at him sheepishly. "Yeah. You do deserve a happy Christmas."

Harry grinned at his godfather. "So, hurry up, so that you're back in time."

"Yeah, but first we need to take some of your blood," Sirius reminded him.

"Oh. I almost forgot." Harry grimaced.

"Bill's coming for dinner tonight. We'll meet after dinner in my room to make the final preparations. Bill knows the best how to take blood for rituals like that. He'd learned it in Egypt."

Harry got up and ran his hands through his hair. "I'll go look for Ginny to tell her about Bill's girlfriend." Raising his hand, he bid his farewell. "See you later."

Sirius shook his head in disbelieve. "What am I going to do with you? I can't believe it…my godson is a gossip."

"Hypocrite." Harry grinned back.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Half an hour after dinner, Harry had awkwardly excused himself from a lively family discussion, so he could sneak up to Sirius' room. On his way out the door, he had whispered to Ginny that she should also come if she had time.

When Harry entered, Ginny's brother, Bill, was already there.

"Harry, there you are, finally," Sirius welcomed him.

"I had to get rid of Ron and Hermione first." Harry defended himself. "I think we should tell them soon. I always feel bad for lying to them."

"Let's just wait a bit longer," Sirius replied. "You can tell them when we're done with the ritual. It's too important. I don't want anyone to interfere. And besides, it's not a lie, you just forgot to mention a detail."

"Okay, Harry." Bill looked at him. "Are you ready? "

"Let's get it over with," Harry groaned, shrugging.

"Okay, please roll up your left sleeve," Bill instructed him while Sirius locked the door.

Puzzled, Harry looked at Ginny's brother. "I thought the blood was taken from the palm or the thumb?"

"We can do that if you really want." Bill rolled his eyes. "But you'll get an uncomfortable stinging in your hand if you're touching something in the next few days, even if the cut is healed properly."

"Okay," Harry said unconvinced. "Then I'll take off my shirt."

Harry pulled his shirt over his head and sat down on the chair.

Bill drew his wand and mumbled a spell Harry didn't understand. With an uncomfortable feeling, Harry watched as a cut formed below his elbow and Bill held an empty phial under his arm to let the blood drip in.

A knock on the door made Harry look up from his bleeding arm.

"It's me, Ginny." He heard his girlfriend's voice from the other side of the door.

Sirius let Ginny into the room and locked the door again.

In the meantime, Bill had closed the phial of blood and healed the cut on his arm.

Amused, Ginny glanced at the half-naked Harry. "What kind of games are you playing here?"

"Haha, that's not funny," Harry groaned, but he still flashed a grin at Ginny as he pulled his shirt back on.

Ginny sat down on the foot of Sirius' bed, looking around expectantly. "What's next?"

"Next step involves Sirius and me," Bill began, pointing to Harry's godfather. "We'll meet tomorrow night on the island and perform the ritual."

"But you can't destroy the locket Horcrux yet," Harry interjected.

"No, of course not," replied Ginny's brother. "We just want to make sure there are no other Horcruxes out there."

"What do we do if Tom notices something?" Ginny asked.

"Tom?" Bill looked at her questioningly.

"Tom Riddle is Voldemort's real name," Harry explained. "It's the name Ginny knows him as from his diary."

"I knew him as Tom for almost a year," Ginny said softly. "I... I don't know why, but I've never called him Voldemort. I've learned to hate him as Tom ... and although I know that Tom has become Voldemort, he'll always be Tom to me. Tom has been following me for too long in my nightmares."

Amazed that she had just explained something so personal, Ginny blushed slightly. Harry got up and sat next to her, putting his hand over hers.

"Okay, what do we do if Tom notices something?" Harry repeated Ginny's question.

"I don't know yet. Let's first just wait and see if he'll notice," Sirius explained.

"Yeah, right," Bill agreed. "Snape will notify the Order if anything unusual happens."

"Do you trust Snape?" Harry asked astonished.

"Yes. Even if I don't like him, I think we should trust him," Sirius declared. "At least with everything he reports about Voldemort."

Harry raised his brows at his godfather but said nothing.

"And if we get the news that Voldemort made new Horcruxes, we'll repeat the ritual," Sirius added.

"Until there's nothing left of his evil soul," snorted Harry.

"I wish we could summon all soul pieces, and he would just drop dead," Ginny said.

"Unfortunately, this option isn't mentioned in the journal," Sirius replied.

"It would be the best Christmas present ever," Harry said, lost in thought.

"Anything else?" Sirius asked, looking around.

"Yeah, there is one more thing." Bill looked at them pensively. "A few weeks ago, I told you that the Order is guarding something in the Ministry."

"I remember." Harry nodded.

"Well," Bill continued. "Last week I was in the Department of Mysteries to guard something for the Order. I was instructed to particularly pay attention that no one enters the Hall of Prophecy."

Bill looked each person in the eyes and continued when he was sure that everyone was listening attentively. "That's why I suspect the Order is guarding a prophecy. However, I have no idea what the prophecy is about. As of tomorrow, Dad is assigned to stand guard. When I'm back from the island I'll ask him if he knows more about the prophecy, or what the Order is guarding in the Ministry."

"If the Order is guarding something, it must have something to do with Voldemort," Sirius said.

"That sounds plausible to me," Harry agreed. A strange feeling suddenly came over him. This didn't sound good at all.

Ginny seemed to notice his reaction. Squeezing his hand, she asked, "What is it, Harry?"

"I don't know," Harry began. "It's all so weird, a prophecy Voldemort is interested in. Voldemort, who's after me all the time...and I don't know why. Dumbledore, who's been avoiding me for months… I just have a bad feeling."

"Maybe I'll find something out," Bill put in. "I need to go to work this weekend, but I'll be here at Christmas Eve. I'll get in touch with Sirius if I hear anything important."

"You know, Bill," Ginny mischievously grinned at her brother, "you don't have to hide Fleur in Gringotts from us, you can just bring her with you."

Bill's ears went red. "Ginny, you ..."

"Don't worry, dear brother, your secrets are safe with me. I owe you that much, for your support for Harry and Sirius."

"You owe me nothing, Ginny," Bill told her. "The Horcruxes are far too important, I'd never refuse to help you."

"You're right," Ginny replied, hugging her brother. With a mischievous smile, she added, "I'm looking forward to seeing Mum's face when you lead Fleur through the door. Not to mentions Ron's." She sniggered.

Bill grinned. "Yeah, Fleur told me he'd asked her out for the Yule Ball last year."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Thursday, December 21st, 1995**

"Dinner is ready." Mrs Weasley's voice echoed through the stairwell.

Scowling at the chessboard in front of him, Harry was wondering why in Merlin's name he'd agreed to play another hopeless game of chess when Ron had challenged him. He looked up and gave Ron a questioning look. "Let's continue the game after dinner?"

"Yeah, I'm starving," his friend agreed.

Harry had said goodbye to Sirius after breakfast and then moved to the drawing room with his friends. The girls had spent the day reading after Hermione had offered Ginny one of her Muggle novels.

Harry got up and glanced over at the sofa. The girls had already put their books aside and were walking to the door. Harry took Ginny's hand and together the four of them made their way down to the kitchen.

As they entered, Mr Weasley was just putting on his winter robes and grabbed the pack of food Ginny's mother had prepared for him.

"What's up, Dad?" Ron asked astonished. "Do you need to go to the Ministry at this time?"

"Yes." Mr Weasley nodded, explaining apologetically, "Urgent Order business, unfortunately."

Kissing his wife on the cheek, he bid farewell. "See you tomorrow, luv. I think I'll be back by breakfast."

"Take care of yourself, Arthur," she replied. "And don't forget to eat something. I've put a warming charm on the tea; it'll be cold there."

"Don't worry, Molly," Mr Weasley replied, reaching to the glass of Floo powder. Waving his goodbye, he threw a pinch of Floo powder into the fire and disappeared.

Trampling noises in the stairwell announced the arrival of the twins, who'd left their room only during meal times since their arrival at Grimmauld Place.

They sat down in their seats and looked around. "Dad's not home yet?" Fred asked.

"He needed to head out on urgent Order business," Ginny explained.

"Our Marauder is missing today as well?" George pointed to Sirius' deserted seat.

"He's back to the island, looking for something," Harry explained.

The conversation was interrupted when Mrs Weasley put the platters of roast beef and vegetables on the table.

Everyone raced to secure his share of the delicious dinner and put it on their plates.

"Calm down everyone, you won't die from hunger," cried Mrs Weasley. "There's still a Shepherd pie in the oven."

"Oh, great," exclaimed Harry. "I'll wait for the Shepherd pie."

Ginny grinned at him. "You better watch out that Ron doesn't snatch it away it for dessert."

"Oi, Ginny," Ron complained. "A growing boy needs his food."

The next half hour was a loud and entertaining affair. The ruckus slowly faded with the amount of food left on the plates. The twins left and said their goodbyes for the evening, claiming they still had some urgent business to do.

Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and squeezed it. "Let's help your mother with the dishes." When Ginny squeezed his hand in return, he called, "Mrs Weasley, thank you for dinner. I'll do the dishes with Ginny."

Ron groaned, "Harry, our chess game is waiting."

"It can wait a few more minutes," Harry replied.

He stood up and was giving Ginny an impish grin when suddenly several things seemed to happen at the same time. Ginny was laughing about something. Harry felt a bit dizzy. Ginny's laughter suddenly turned into a horrified scream. Harry felt a terrible pain in his forehead. Blood spread over Ginny's face and shirt…and slowly everything went black around Harry.


	8. Chapter 8: Revelations

**Friday, December 22th, 1995**

The sound of the opening door interrupted Ginny's train of thoughts.

She looked up and saw her mother standing in the doorway. She heard her worried voice. "Ginny, you need to eat something. It won't help Harry if you starve."

"I know, Mum," Ginny said quietly. "But I'm not hungry."

Her mother walked up to her, holding a plate with sandwiches in her hand. "At least try to eat something." She set the plate on the desk at the foot of Harry's bed. "He's going to be alright. Poppy promised it."

Ginny turned her gaze back to the bed where Harry lay motionless. His pale face was barely visible under the enormous head bandage. Suppressing her tears, she sobbed, "Yeah,… I know."

"You were up all night, Ginny. You must go to sleep at some point," her mother continued in an insistent voice.

"I won't leave him alone." Ginny shook her head.

"But..."

"No," Ginny interjected. "I won't leave him alone, just as he wouldn't leave me alone."

"Okay, then I'll come back later," her mother said, leaving the room with a worried look.

Ginny wanted to be there when Harry woke up. If she'd be in his place and she woke up, the first thing she would do would be to look for Harry. And she hoped Harry would do the same. No, she wouldn't leave him. She wanted to be there for him when he woke up, in case he needed anything.

Absentmindedly, she got up and walked the room. Harry had been unconscious for more than 20 hours now. Ginny had left the room only to go to the loo, and when Madam Pomfrey insisted that she'd leave the room while she examined Harry. When she noticed that she was staring at the plate for a while now, she reached for a sandwich and took a bite.

Slowly she walked back to her chair and sat down, pondering the events of the last day.

The image of the exploding scar on Harry's forehead was still burned into her brain. The shock, when his blood suddenly sprayed everywhere, and Harry collapsed, still shook her. Screaming, she'd thrown herself on his fallen body and only left his side for a few moments when Madam Pomfrey had arrived.

Ginny had been so distraught that she'd completely forgotten to inform Sirius. Harry's godfather had returned from the island late that night when the Hogwarts matron had already left.

Sirius had joined Ginny's vigil until the early hours of the morning. At some point, when he'd almost fallen off his chair, Ginny had insisted he go to bed.

After he'd left, Ginny had cautiously laid down on the bed next to Harry and slept for a few hours. She had hoped her mother wouldn't notice it and was relieved that she didn't scold her when she and Madam Pomfrey entered the room to check on Harry in the morning. She'd set a plate of sandwiches on the desk and left the room with Ginny to let the Hogwarts matron do her work.

Ginny had just swallowed the last bite of her sandwich when the door opened again. She was about to give her mother an annoyed look when Sirius walked through the door, a worried look on his face. Giving Sirius a silent nod, she stood up.

"How is Harry?" Sirius asked, looking anxiously at his godson.

Ginny glanced past Sirius at Harry's pale face. "Madam Pomfrey was here in the morning. She said he will fully recover, but it will take its time. He is very weak and lost a lot of blood."

Turning to the man, she said hesitantly, "Sirius?"

"Hmmm?"

"I spent all night thinking about what happened," she began. After gathering her thoughts for a moment, she went on, "Isn't it odd that Harry's scar exploded at the same time you summoned the soul pieces?" She paused briefly to ponder her next words. "Is it possible that Harry also was a Horcrux?"

She looked Sirius in the eye. "The more I think about it, the more everything fits together what we know about that Halloween night when Tom killed Harry's parents, and the way Horcruxes are created. This piece of Tom's soul may have caused Harry's scar when it invaded him. But why would Tom choose Harry as one of his Horcruxes." Ginny shook her head. "And why has he been trying to kill him? Why would he want to kill one of his Horcruxes? Somehow, I've the feeling I'm missing something. Somehow it doesn't make sense."

Sirius nodded. "I had the same thoughts." He looked contemplatively at Harry's motionless form. "But you made an interesting point. Why would he try to kill one of his Horcruxes? Maybe he didn't know Harry was a Horcrux? But wouldn't this mean he didn't want to create a Horcrux then? Maybe something went wrong with his plan. I'd really want to know what Dumbledore thinks about this, and if he knows more than we do... or at least suspects it."

Ginny gave Sirius a horrified look. "Harry had had a piece of Tom's soul in his head all his life, and you think Dumbledore might have known about it?"

"Ever since I told Dumbledore what my brother had found out, I've had the feeling he knows what Horcruxes are. And he always spoke about this mysterious connection between Harry and Voldemort, and that Voldemort could use this connection to spy on the Order. This all sounds very much as if Dumbledore at least suspected that Harry was a Horcrux."

"We should have noticed it as well," Ginny said and sat down on the edge of the desk.

"Yes, we should have," Sirius agreed. "But on the other hand, maybe it's better we didn't know."

"How can you…?"

Sirius interrupted her, raising his hands defensively. "Don't get me wrong. I know, it could've gone terribly wrong. What I mean is that we wouldn't have performed the ritual if we had known the risk. But who knows if there would have been any other way to get rid of the damned thing in Harry's head? I haven't seen a single passage in the books about Horcruxes existing in living beings. Maybe, with hindsight, it was good we didn't know."

"We should tell Ron and Hermione what happened," Ginny suggested. "They are worried about Harry, but have no idea what really happened to him."

"You two can tell them as soon as Harry is getting better. If you want, I'll take the blame for the secrecy. After all, I forbade you to talk about the possibility of merging soul pieces with anyone else."

"Mum also deserves to know," Ginny said. "But she would be even more worried, and would certainly try to prevent me from being involved in any of this."

A knock on the door made Ginny look up. To her surprise, she saw Dumbledore stride into the room.

"Good morning, Miss Weasley. Good morning, Sirius," greeted the older man, giving them a friendly nod. "I understand that young Harry is doing well considering the circumstances."

"He's doing well?" Ginny exclaimed, aghast. "He's been unconscious for hours."

"And just what do you know about his circumstances, Albus?" Sirius asked.

"Madam Pomfrey has informed me that Mr Potter will be fine in a few days, but she couldn't tell me anything about the cause of his injury. Apparently, none of the witnesses saw what exactly happened to Mr Potter. I suppose you were there, too, Miss Weasley? How did you experience it?"

"Yes," Ginny said, blushing slightly. "I was there. For no apparent reason, he suddenly started bleeding and collapsed. Ever since Madam Pomfrey came and stopped the bleeding, he's just been resting unconscious in his bed."

"Do you have any ideas what happened to Harry, Albus?" Sirius asked, watching Dumbledore closely.

"A lot of odd things happened last night," the Headmaster replied evasively, with a sidelong glance at Ginny.

"There's no reason to hold back, Albus," Sirius replied. "Ginny knows everything I know, as does Harry. They deserve to know. After all, they discovered the information about the Horcruxes."

"Very well," Dumbledore replied, looking pensively at Ginny. "This morning Arthur returned from his night watch at the Ministry and reported that he'd found an unconscious giant snake in the corridor to the Department of Mysteries. The giant snake was bleeding from a wound between its eyes and had a striking resemblance to Voldemort's pet snake, Nagini. After everything Severus had told me about the snake, I had assumed Nagini to be a Horcrux. Much to my surprise, the unconscious giant snake was not a Horcrux."

Dumbledore went on, "Tonight, I've visited the Gaunt shack outside the village of Little Hangleton to look for a ring I also assumed to be a Horcrux. I've found the ring, but it, too, was not a Horcrux. Either my presumptions about the Horcruxes were all wrong, or someone has been manipulating the Horcruxes. Summoning them, perhaps? But why would Tom do that? Yet, who else could possibly be interested in manipulating the Horcruxes?"

"Do you think Harry was a Horcrux as well, Albus?" Sirius gave the man an intently look.

"As I said," Dumbledore replied, "a lot of odd things happened last night, and I'm afraid these things still need quite a bit of pondering."

"But you'd tell us if you know what's wrong with Harry?" Sirius asked.

"Of course, I'd tell you if I knew exactly what happened," Dumbledore replied.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Sunday, December 24th, 1995**

Ginny was sitting at the desk in Harry's room in front of a plate of sandwiches and a carafe of pumpkin juice her mother had brought for lunch.

She took a sandwich and got up to take her seat on the chair next to Harry's bed. It had been almost three days, but Harry's condition hadn't changed. Madam Pomfrey had visited twice a day to examine him, telling her that Harry needed more time to recover.

Ginny had used the time when Pomfrey was with Harry to freshen up but had otherwise refused to leave the room. At night, when everyone else was asleep, she lay down on the bed next to Harry, pulled a blanket over herself, trying to find a few hours of sleep.

But after the three days, her patience was wearing thin. As much as she wanted company, and that someone's visiting Harry, she once had already thrown both Ron and Hermione out of the room when they started bickering.

She was so engrossed in staring at Harry's pale face that she didn't notice Sirius entering the room until he stood next to Harry's bed.

"Is there any news?" he asked after a while, breaking the silence.

"No, nothing," Ginny replied worriedly. "He barely moves. Pomfrey washed him this morning and put on new pyjamas. I hope she's also doing something to keep him from starving. After all, he can't eat anything in his condition."

"Everything's going to be fine." Sirius patted her shoulder. "In a few days, the world will look brighter again."

He pulled the chair from the desk closer and sat down next to Ginny. "Did you know there was an Order meeting last night?"

"Is there any news?" Ginny asked, her eyes flashing with interest.

"Oh, yes," Sirius chuckled. "You can say that. Snape attended the Order meeting, and he had some quite interesting things to tell."

"I take it, Tom noticed something?" Ginny could barely hide her excitement.

"He noticed something? I'd say he's pissed off," Sirius declared. "At first he was missing Nagini and couldn't figure out what happened to her. By the way, Dumbledore brought the snake to Hagrid to nurse her back to health and use her to teach the students about giant snakes."

"Is Hagrid back? He was on a mission for the Order," Ginny interjected.

"Hagrid has been back for two days, and he asked me to say hello to you both. He said he's looking forward to teaching again."

"That's great." Ginny beamed, but went on impatiently, "But back to Snape, what else did he say?"

"According to Snape, Voldemort ordered Bellatrix to get something out of her Gringotts vault. He himself left for Little Hangleton with a couple of his Death Eaters. I guess he wanted to look for the ring Dumbledore had found there. When he came back, he was furious." Sirius paused a moment, before he went on, "Actually, I was hoping that Voldemort wouldn't notice so quickly that his Horcruxes were gone. He'll probably be very nervous. I wouldn't be surprised if he'd make new Horcruxes."

"What happened to the Horcruxes?"

Startled, Ginny turned around. Ron and Hermione had entered the room, unnoticed.

"Oh," Ginny began nervously. "There's something we need to tell you."

Hermione looked at Sirius questioningly. "Did you find something new in the books?"

"Ehmm," Sirius began slowly, shaking his head, "not exactly. There was something in the Black Family's Journal we've never told anyone about. But I think it's time to tell you about it."

"But not before Harry awakens," Ginny interrupted. "There are things we only found out two days ago, and Harry doesn't know about it yet. It concerns him directly. That's why we need to talk to Harry before we talk to anyone else. That's why you need to wait a bit longer. I'm sorry."

"That's right," Sirius confirmed. "We shouldn't talk about it without Harry, especially because part of it is his story to tell. Even if he doesn't know it yet."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Tuesday, December 26th, 1995**

Ginny stepped out of the shower. Pulling the towel closer around her chest, she hurried over to the room she was sharing with Hermione. She'd barely been in her room in the last week, only to shower and change clothes.

Ever since Harry had fallen unconscious, she'd been with him. She'd only left his room when Madam Pomfrey examined him early in the morning and in the evening. As always, the Hogwarts Matron had arrived punctually at seven o'clock and woke her. She hadn't made a fuss that Ginny was lying next to Harry on the bed. Apparently, she'd gotten used to the sight in the last days.

Quietly, Ginny had sneaked into her room trying not to wake up Hermione. She was just pulling a new shirt over her head when she heard the other girl's voice. "How's Harry?"

Ginny looked up and gave Hermione a sad look. "Nothing's changed. Pomfrey is with him now. You can drop by later if you want. I'll just go and fetch a mug of tea before I'll go back."

Turning to the door, she added, "See you."

Moments later, Ginny pushed open the door to Harry's room, trying not to spill the tea in her mug.

"She'll be right back, Mr Potter," she heard the Matron say. "How are you? Are you still in pain?"

"I'm fine," she heard Harry mumble while trying to sit up in bed. "Uuhu," he suddenly cried, slumping back onto the bed.

"Slow down!" Pomfrey ordered him. "You'll feel dizzy for a while until you've eaten something."

"Harry," Ginny shouted, happy to see him awake.

"Ginny, is that you?"

"Of course, silly," Ginny beamed with tears in her eyes. She quickly put her mug on the desk and hurried over to his bed. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she took his hand in hers, grinning at him. "I've been sitting here all week to be there when you wake up. I'm away for 10 minutes to have a shower, and what do you do? You choose that very moment to sneak back."

She reached for his glasses lying on the night stand and put them on his nose. "Now you can see me properly," she chuckled.

"Ehmm," Madam Pomfrey interrupted the scene. "Miss Weasley, Mr Potter is still very weak. He needs some tea and a broth with bread, but not too much at once. May I assume that you can ensure that Molly doesn't feed him too much at once?"

Ginny chuckled, "I'll try my best."

"See you tonight, Mr Potter." Pomfrey waved her goodbye. Turning back to Ginny, she added, "I'll talk to your mother about Mr Potter's diet, Miss Weasley."

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey," Ginny replied, glad she didn't have to leave Harry alone to update her mother.

"So, Harry." Ginny looked at him seriously. "How are you really doing?"

"I'm fine," Harry said softly.

"Harry..." Ginny gave him a stern gaze.

"No, really," Harry continued hoarsely. "It's not that bad. My throat is a bit dry. I could use something to drink. But I'm not hungry." Suddenly he paused, giving her a questioning look. "What happened to me?"

"Good question," Ginny said. "I think you'd better rest a bit before we talk about what happened."

"I only remember that I suddenly became dizzy." His eyes widened in horror. "There was blood everywhere. You were screaming. Ginny, what happened? And why do I have this bandage around my head?"

Taking his hand in hers, she squeezed it. "Do you really want to talk about it right now?"

"Is it that bad?" he asked worriedly.

"To be honest, it was horrible," Ginny admitted, barely stifling her tears when she remembered the moment when blood spurted from Harry's forehead.

Noticing Harry's scared look, she quickly went on, "But it's okay now. Really. Madam Pomfrey said you need to rest for a few days, and everything will be alright."

"So, what...?" Harry started again.

Stroking the back of his hand with her thumb, she said softly, "We think it happened the moment Bill and Sirius performed the soul merging ritual, summoning all of Tom's soul pieces from the Horcruxes."

The noise of the opening door made Ginny pause.

"Poppy said Harry is awake." She heard Sirius voice from the door.

"Yes, he is," Ginny confirmed.

"Hi Harry," Sirius grinned at his godson. "How are you?"

Harry rolled his eyes at the question, but Ginny replied, "He said he's fine. I think Mum will soon bring something to drink and to eat."

"I'm glad you're back among the living." Sirius beamed.

"Yeah, me too," croaked Harry. Turning back to Ginny, he asked, "So, what about the ritual?"

Looking at Sirius, Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "He insists on knowing what happened. Although I think he ought to rest first."

"Okay," Harry interjected. "What has the damn ritual to do with the bandage on my head?"

"Harry, ..." Ginny started again, trying to stay calm, unable to suppress the tears in her eyes. "We think Tom created a Horcrux when he..." Ginny stopped, sobbing.

"...when he killed your parents," Sirius continued for her.

Harry got even paler than he was before. With flickering eyes, he gasped for air.

"Harry, it's fine. It's gone," Ginny cried and threw herself over him.

It seemed to take forever but, when his breathing finally became even, Ginny straightened slightly. Taking his hands in hers, she looked him in the eye.

As Harry turned away, Ginny whispered, "Harry, look at me. Please."

It took a while for Harry to slowly turn his head, and look in Ginny's eyes, horrified. "He was in my head, Ginny. All the time."

"Yes, and so what?" Suppressing a sob, Ginny gave him a challenging look. "I know it was different, but I also had him in my head. The thought isn't pretty. Sometimes it's even nauseating. But never forget Harry, we got rid of the diary, and we got rid of that damned thing in your head. Doesn't this make us stronger than Tom?"

They looked into each other's eyes for what felt like forever when a shy smile slowly spread across Harry's face and Ginny felt him squeezing her hands. "Yeah, we won't let him win."

Sirius cleared his throat. "As much as I hate to interrupt you, but Harry has visitors."

"Ehmm, ... Uh, oh, ..." Ginny stuttered, letting go of Harry. Gathering her thoughts, she turned around. "Good morning, Mum. Hi, Ron, Hermione."

"Good morning, Ginny," her mother replied, placing a tray of tea, bread and a bowl of broth on the desk. Beaming, she looked at Harry and walked to the bed. "Harry, I'm glad you woke up, we've been so worried."

"Hi mate." Ron eyed Harry critically.

"Hello Harry, how are you?" Hermione exclaimed excitedly. "I was so worried about you, what happened to you?"

"Let the poor boy breathe," her mother intervened. "Come, Harry dear. I have some tea for you. You must be thirsty. Don't worry, the tea is just lukewarm." She handed the cup to Harry and assisted him in holding it.

After a few sips, Harry slowly raised his head. "Thank you, Mrs Weasley."

"You're welcome, Harry. Poppy said you need to eat some broth and bread. You should eat before it gets cold."

While her mother fed Harry the broth, Ginny told Ron and Hermione how Harry woke up when Madam Pomfrey examined him.

"What happened to Harry that he got so badly injured?" Hermione raised one of her earlier questions.

"We will tell you as soon as Harry's up again, Hermione. I just told him what we think what happened to him. Please, let the news sink in before he talks to you two about it." She paused a moment before she added, "We also need to talk to Dumbledore. But first, Harry needs to rest."

"Was it that bad?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," admitted Ginny. "But he's fine now. Believe me."

When her mother put the empty bowl of broth back on the tray, Ginny turned to Harry. "Are you ready for your Christmas presents?"

Harry's eyes bugged out. "Christmas presents? Are you joking? How long did I sleep?"

"We've been waiting for almost a week for you to wake up, Mate," Ron replied. "Today's Boxing Day."

"Let the poor boy rest," Ginny's mother interjected. "How about we all visit Harry for half an hour at tea time, so you can all unwrap your presents?"

"But we always unwrap our presents in the morning, Mum," Ron said.

"But not this year, Ron. Harry needs his rest." Her mother concluded the discussion, shooing them all out of the room.

"Ginny, please stay," Harry croaked.

"Yes. Of course, I'll stay with you," Ginny said. Turning to her mother, she added, "Someone needs to be here if Harry needs something."

When the door had been shut, she sat back on the edge of the bed, beaming at Harry. "I'm glad you're finally awake. I couldn't stand to wait any longer. So much has happened."

"Then tell me," Harry said.

"Are you sure you're ready?" Ginny gave him an appraising look. "You still look a bit tired."

"I'm fine." With a mischievous grin, he added, "And I love to listen to your voice."

Ginny nudged his arm, smirking. "Seems you're really fine. Okay, then listen."

She moved to the chair and leaned over to rest her head on her hands. "The ritual has triggered some events we didn't expect. The way it affected you was only one of them," Ginny began, giving Harry a summary of the last days, from Nagini, and Gaunt's ring, to Voldemort's rage, when he noticed that something was wrong with his Horcruxes.

"And Sirius agreed to tell Dumbledore about the ritual?" Harry asked after Ginny finished her tale.

"Yes," Ginny affirmed. "As soon as you're strong enough to get up. I've already told Ron and Hermione that we'll explain everything that happened to you. Hermione can't wait."

"Yeah, that's Hermione," Harry sniggered, suppressing a yawn.

"You better sleep a bit now," Ginny said firmly. "I'll go fetch a book and then I'll stay with you."

"Yes, Ma'am," Harry muttered, closing his eyes.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Sunday, December 31st, 1995**

Ginny stood excitedly in front of Harry's door. Today he was allowed to get up for the first time since he awoke five days ago, and she wanted to pick him up for breakfast.

She knocked on his door, calling, "Harry, are you ready?"

"I'm almost done, but you can come in." She heard Harry's voice through the door.

Ginny opened the door and saw Harry sitting on the bed, putting on his slippers.

"How are you doing this morning?" She beamed at him. "But don't you dare to say, I'm fine."

"But I am fine," he answered with a cheeky smile. "Except that I'm hungry."

Ginny raised her eyebrow. "But you remember that Dumbledore wanted to see you this morning?"

"Yep," Harry replied. "It seems he has changed his mind after shunning me the last term. I take it Hermione is impatiently waiting for us to talk to her and Ron as well."

"You can bet on that," Ginny rolled her eyes. "She's tried every night to ask me a lot of questions." Ginny had resumed sleeping in the room she was sharing with Hermione, while Ron had moved back into Harry's room.

Harry got up from his bed, grimacing. "Merlin, now that you reminded me, I'd rather stay in bed for a few more days. Let's head down to breakfast."

"Yeah, Mum is surely waiting for you," Ginny agreed and walked down the stairs with Harry. "Do you know that Hermione's parents are back? She'll go home tomorrow morning and spend the rest of the holidays with them."

"That's great. I'm sure she missed her parents," Harry replied.

As they entered the kitchen, Ron and Hermione were already seated.

"Good morning," Ginny greeted everyone with a hearty smile.

"Good morning, Harry, Ginny," her mother called. "Sit down. Your breakfast is ready."

"Where are the others?" Harry asked in surprise, sipping his cup of tea.

"Fred and George went to Lee Jordan's yesterday," Ginny explained. "They're spending New Year's Eve with his family." She grinned at Harry. "I'd bet they arranged it, so they can try out their new fireworks."

Ginny's mother served them their plates of fried egg, bacon, baked beans and toast, asking, "Do you want some black pudding, Harry?"

"No, thank you, Mrs Weasley," Harry refused politely.

"Where is Mr Weasley? It's Sunday, he won't be at work?" Harry looked at the woman.

"Arthur is away on Order business," Ginny's mother explained. "He said it would take all day."

They were almost finished devouring their breakfast when Sirius walked through the door with Dumbledore in tow. After they had greeted everyone, Sirius pointed to an empty chair. "Have a seat, Albus. Molly, I hope you have another cup of your marvellous tea for us."

"Harry, my boy, how are you?" Dumbledore asked, taking a sip of his tea.

"I'm fine," Harry answered tersely. "I still need to thank you for your help in my trial in August. I know it's a bit late, but unfortunately, I haven't seen you since then, Headmaster."

"I'm sorry Harry, it's been a busy term." Dumbledore gave Harry a friendly smile. "But today I'm here to catch up with you. I hope you're well enough to answer some of my questions."

"Yes, I'd be happy to be of help," Harry replied. Crossing his arms, he added with a sly smile, "But I also have some questions I'm hoping to get answers for."

Ginny looked apprehensively at her mother. She had a bit of a guilty conscience that her parents didn't know what she was doing. On the other hand, she was afraid her mother would insist that it was too dangerous for her. But it was out of the question that her mother could stop her to help Harry. So far, her mother had been very understanding, but she had the feeling that her understanding would run thin when it came to the Horcruxes. She was relieved when Dumbledore, after a quick glance at her mother, suggested, "Let's continue the conversation in the drawing room when you're done with breakfast."

"That sounds good to me," Harry replied, his gaze wandering around the table. "I wanted to talk to Ron and Hermione anyway."

Dumbledore gave Harry a hesitant look but nodded finally. "Very well. As you wish."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Following Dumbledore's suggestion, they had gone to the drawing room and had sat down at the dining table, Ginny next to Harry, Sirius and Dumbledore facing them, and Ron and Hermione beside them at the heads of the table.

Glancing at Harry, Ginny noticed his eyes wandering nervously from one to the other. She nudged his shoulders, whispering, "It'll be alright."

"Thanks," Harry muttered.

Giving Sirius a questioning look, Ginny asked, "Where do we start?"

"Good question," Sirius replied. Looking from Ron to Hermione, he started, "I take it everyone here knows what a Horcrux is?" When they both nodded, he went on, "We, that is Harry, Ginny, and I, have told you that my brother, Regulus, found out that Voldemort made an unknown number of Horcruxes to gain immortality. This information was far too important to neglect. That's why we shared this information with you."

Sirius paused a moment to gather his thoughts. Turning to Dumbledore, he said, "Though I suspected that you knew about it already, Albus."

"I'd rather say that I had a suspicion," Dumbledore answered evasively.

"Very well," Sirius continued. "Harry and Ginny did not only find my brother's letter and the books about the Horcruxes, they also found the Family Journal of the Black family."

Ginny noticed Dumbledore turning to Sirius, giving him a scrutinising gaze.

Unfazed, Sirius went on, "In the Family Journal, we've found some very interesting results of research my ancestors did on Horcruxes." Sirius suddenly snorted. "I don't know if the name Black is the reason, but my ancestors obviously loved everything to do with Dark Magic. I'm surprised it isn't called Black Magic nowadays."

"That would make you the Black Lord then," Harry chuckled.

"Well, back to the research results," Sirius interrupted the snicker, shaking his head. "There was a very interesting topic in the Journal that we weren't initially sure what to make of it. It seemed to be rather important. That's why we decided to do a little more research on our own before we spoke about it with anyone else. It's about a ritual that would summon all soul pieces belonging to the same person. The ritual summons the soul pieces from other Horcruxes and merges them into one Horcrux. Of course, you need to have at least one of the Horcruxes to summon the other pieces."

Dumbledore suddenly gave Harry an inquisitorial look. "Does this mean you have a Horcrux?"

"Yes," Sirius grinned, a mischievous glint in his eyes. The grin disappeared when he went on. "Regulus had managed to find a Horcrux, Slytherin's locket. He paid with his life for it."

"That's interesting indeed," Dumbledore muttered deep in thought.

Ginny glanced over at Hermione, who was obviously trying to put two and two together. She gazed accusatorily back at her as she noticed Ginny's look.

"I guess you performed the ritual last week?" Dumbledore inquired.

"Yes, we did," Sirius admitted.

"And you didn't know...?" asked Dumbledore.

"No, we didn't," Sirius confessed.

Hermione looked horrified at Harry while Ron gave Sirius a confused look. "What didn't you know?"

Noticing Sirius was looking at Harry, Ginny squeezed his hand.

Harry stared at the table. Slowly he began with a soft voice, "I..." He let his eyes wander from one to the other, took a deep breath, and whispered, "I was one of Voldemort's Horcruxes."

"You what...?" bellowed Ron.

Hermione grabbed Harry's hand, crying, "Oh Harry...that's...that's terrible."

Ginny got up and wrapped her arms around Harry. "Did you understand? He said he was one of the Horcruxes. He isn't a Horcrux anymore."

"But you could have killed him," Hermione shrieked.

"We didn't know, Hermione." Ginny gave her friend a stern look.

"But you should have told us. We could have helped you to research it more," Hermione insisted.

Sirius raised his voice. "It was my decision that both, Harry and Ginny, shouldn't talk about their knowledge from my Family Journal. And I still think that, at that time, it was the right decision. We may have been lucky, but with hindsight, it was the right decision."

"But ..." Hermione began.

"Hermione, think about it," said Ginny. "What would it mean if Harry would still be a Horcrux?"

Hermione's eyes flickered from Ginny to Harry and back when suddenly realization seemed to hit her. "Nobody would be able to defeat Voldemort as long as Harry lives."

Sirius looked at Dumbledore who was silently watching the exchange. "I take it you knew that Harry was a Horcrux, Albus?"

"Well, no..." Dumbledore replied reluctantly. "But I suspected it. Ever since he brought the diary out of the chamber, and I found out it had been a Horcrux.""

Ron gave Ginny a horrified look. "The diary was a Horcrux? Ginny, did you know?"

"Yeah," Ginny admitted.

"Albus, did you ever try to check whether Harry was a Horcrux?" Sirius gave Dumbledore an enquiring look.

"No." The older man shook his head.

"So, it was more than just a suspicion," Sirius stated. "I take it, the Horcrux was the mysterious connection to Voldemort you've been talking about? Is there more we should know about?"

Giving Harry a sad look, Dumbledore began, "Actually, there is one more thing I wanted to keep from Harry as long as possible, so it wouldn't be a burden for him."

Ginny felt Harry stiffen. She still had her arm wrapped around his shoulder and pulled him closer.

"What is it?" Harry watched Dumbledore attentively.

"There is a prophecy, Harry," the Headmaster started to explain.

"Is it the prophecy that caused James and Lily to go into hiding?" Sirius interrupted.

"Yes, it is," admitted Dumbledore.

"What is the prophecy about? I need to know what it says." Harry insisted.

Gathering his thoughts, Dumbledore began to recite.

 _"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."_

"So, the prophecy is the reason Voldemort is after me." Harry shook his head. "Now everything becomes clear to me. He didn't want to kill my parents, he has always been after me."

"Harry, don't you dare to think that someone blames you for the death of your parents," Ginny chided him.

"But you've heard the prophecy," Harry insisted.

"Of course, I did. But it wasn't you who made the prophecy, nor did you kill your parents. While I don't know who made the prophecy, I'm pretty sure who killed your parents, and it wasn't you."

Harry looked over at Dumbledore. "Does it mean I have to fight against Voldemort? Am I the only one who can defeat him?"

"Harry, my boy," said Dumbledore. "Prophecies are not always easy to understand. Many a prophecy only becomes true because at least one of the involved parties knows about it and acts accordingly. We know that Voldemort only knows the first part the prophecy, and because he believes in prophecies, he acts accordingly. He marked you as his equal. It was a coincidence because it could have been Neville Longbottom as well."

"Neville, how is that?" Harry asked in surprise.

"Neville was born on the day before you, so the phrasing would fit for him as well. But Voldemort had chosen you, and nobody but he himself knows why."

"What does it mean, either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives?" Hermione interjected. "It seems too ... is it still correct?"

"Excellent question," Dumbledore replied. "This passage evidently refers to the Horcrux in Harry, but today we learned that fate has its own ways and does not always adhere to prophecies."

"Does it mean I don't have to fight against Voldemort?" Harry asked. "I don't think I have a chance against him. He's the second most powerful wizard ever."

A smile crossed Dumbledore's face when he heard Harry's obvious praise. "The future will show the answer, Harry. As long as Voldemort doesn't know the second half of the prophecy, he won't rush things."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Saturday, January 6th, 1996**

Ginny had cuddled in Harry's arm and was cheerfully looking around the common room. It was already late in the evening. The Gryffindors had used the prospect of a free Sunday to party with their friends after the Christmas holidays.

Fred and George sat around a table with the other Seventh Years. Judging by their merriment, their Butterbeer has been spiked. Ron was playing chess with Seamus while Hermione had retired to her room some time ago.

Ginny was glad that Harry had taken the revelation of the prophecy relatively calmly. At least he had said that not much had changed for him, as Voldemort was still after him, just as he had been before he'd heard the prophecy.

"Tired?" Harry asked when she couldn't suppress a yawn.

"Hmmm," Ginny growled. "But the evening is so nice, I don't want to go to bed."

"It's getting late. I need to head up to my dorm soon. Sirius wanted to call me tonight." Harry looked at her. "Do you want to head down to breakfast with me tomorrow morning? Or do you want to sleep in?"

"Sleeping in sounds good to me." Ginny yawned again.

A humming noise in her pocket made Ginny sit up. She gave Harry an astonished look. "It seems Sirius is calling." She pulled the wooden box out of her pocket, took out the mirror and tapped it with her wand.

Sirius' worried face appeared on the mirror. "Hello, Ginny. Do you know where Harry is?"

"He's sitting right next to me. What happened?" Ginny asked, alarmed, turning the mirror so Sirius could see Harry.

"Harry, where have you been?" Sirius asked worriedly. "I've been trying to call you for an hour."

"We're sitting in the common room, and you wanted to call me in twenty minutes," Harry explained in a slightly annoyed voice. "What's the matter?"

"Can we talk undisturbed?" Sirius replied undeterred

Looking around, Ginny said, "I think so, we are alone."

"Okay, listen," Sirius began. "As you already know, Voldemort is furious because of the Horcruxes. Tonight, Snape reported that Voldemort wants you to be brought to him as soon as possible, dead or alive. Dumbledore suspects that Voldemort wants to get hold of the prophecy. Apparently, he's becoming desperate."

Harry looked thoughtfully at the mirror.

"Harry," Sirius started again. "You know what that means. You need to be cautious. If it were up to me, you would come back to London."

"Forget it." Harry shook his head. "What is Dumbledore going to do?"

"Dumbledore claims that Hogwarts is the safest place for you."

Harry snorted. "I know what he means with being safe. Two years ago, even a wanted murderer was able to sneak up into our dorm."

"Harry, don't laugh about it," his godfather exclaimed angrily. "You need to watch your back. You both better never walk alone anywhere about the castle. He might use Ginny to get to you, Harry."

"Thanks for the news, Sirius," Harry said solemnly.

"I'll call you tomorrow night again. See you later." Sirius gave him a stern look and disappeared when the mirror went dark again.

"Yes," sighed Harry, "see you later." He looked at Ginny. "That was the end of a nice evening. We better go to bed."

"Tomorrow morning at eight in the common room?" Ginny asked.

"I thought you wanted to sleep in?" Harry raised his eyebrows.

"You're not going anywhere alone here, Harry."


	9. Chapter 9: Valentines

**AN:** Here it is, the penultimate chapter. Maybe I'll add a short epilogue after that.

* * *

 **Monday, February 12th, 1996**

"What the...oh." Harry almost pulled the communication mirror out of his pocket, but then thought better of it. "Gin, I'll be right back. Sirius is calling."

When Ginny gave him a questioning look, he shrugged. "I don't know what he wants."

Although they had agreed to carry the mirrors with them all the time, Sirius had never called him at dinner time. Without hurry, Harry headed to the loo in a side corridor of the Great Hall.

He was relieved when he found the room deserted and went straight into one of the stalls.

He left the door ajar to have good view at the entry door and took his mirror out of its wooden box. Tapping the mirror with his wand, he muttered, "Sirius."

The mirror lit up and the worried face of his godfather appeared.

"Hi, Sirius, what's up?" Harry asked.

"I'm glad I caught you," Sirius replied. "We need to talk. As soon as possible. Undisturbed."

"In half an hour?" Harry asked, worried about the concern on his godfather's face.

"Okay, in half an hour," Sirius confirmed, and the mirror went blank again. Shaking his head in confusion, Harry put the mirror back into his pocket and left the cubicle.

He stepped out into the corridor when he heard a voice calling him. "Wotcher, Harry."

Startled, he turned and looked into the grinning face of a pink-haired young woman wearing an Auror uniform.

"Eh, ... I remember you," Harry began. "Nymph ..."

"Nope," the young woman interrupted him, rolling her eyes. "It's Tonks. Nice to meet you again, Harry."

"Yes, it's been a while," Harry confirmed. "August?"

"Exactly." Tonks smiled at him. "You were sick when I was at Grimmauld Place for Christmas. At least that's what my cousin Sirius told me."

"Oh, Sirius is your cousin?" Harry asked in astonishment as the door to the girls' loo opened and Luna stepped out.

"Hi Luna," Harry greeted.

"Hi Harry," replied the blond girl.

"I hope to see you soon again, Harry," Tonks said. "Now I need to accompany this young Lady to Umbridge's trial. Oh, and thanks for alerting us back then, Harry."

Harry escorted the two of them back to the Great Hall, where he took his seat next to Ginny again.

"Is Luna on her way to Umbridge's trial?" his girlfriend asked, watching Luna and Tonks leave the Great Hall.

"Yeah." Harry nodded. "And, Sirius wants to talk to me as soon as possible. Do you want to come with me?"

"Silly question," Ginny replied. "You're lucky I let you go to the toilet on your own. Where should we do the call?"

Harry gave her a scowl. "You know I can take care of myself."

"Of course, I know that," Ginny replied. "But do you remember what Sirius told us? Ever since he warned us, you never let me leave the Gryffindor Tower alone. You made sure that Colin is my constant companion when you are not with me."

"This is..." Harry started.

"No, that's not different at all." Ginny disagreed. "If you don't like my company..."

"Gin, that's not true," Harry complained. "I've asked you if you wanted to come with me, and I want you to come with me." Harry shrugged. "It's just ... The whole situation just gets on my nerves ... this constantly watching our backs."

"Don't you think I feel the same?" Ginny asked.

Harry took a deep breath. "You're right," he admitted. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking." Looking into her eye, he gave Ginny a sad smile.

"Not only you." Ginny took his hand in hers. "This situation is getting on both of our nerves. When was the last time we had an evening just for the two of us?"

"Yes, it's been a while." Harry squeezed her hand. "But for now, let's visit Barnabas the Barmy and ask Sirius what's bitten him."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Harry walked three times past the section of blank wall opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, concentrating hard on what he wanted the room to look like.

He beckoned Ginny over as he slowly opened the door to the Room of Requirements. "Come on, before someone sees us."

He grinned at her mischievously as he led her through the door.

"Oh, Harry." Ginny laughed. "Do you know how long it's been since I've seen this room?"

"No idea. Last summer? Before you went to Grimmauld Place?" Harry looked around. "I've never been in your room, Ginny."

"It was in the summer after my second year," Ginny said. "That's ... that was a year and a half ago." Harry saw tears rolling down her cheek as she laughed happily.

"How did you come up with this silly idea?" Ginny asked, shaking her head in amazement.

"I had something to make up for, hadn't I?" He grinned sheepishly at Ginny.

"Oh, Harry," Ginny laughed and hugged him. "That was so cute of you."

"Are you going to show me your room?" Harry asked.

"There is not much to see," Ginny explained. "I spent the first eleven years of my life here. Well, that's not true," she chuckled. "The first year I slept in Mum and Dad's room."

Harry looked around. "Pink walls, huh?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Oh," Ginny snickered sheepishly. "This was my wish for my sixth birthday."

Ginny went to the wardrobe and opened it. "I don't think any of this clobber still fits me," she giggled.

Harry looked around. "Who's on the poster?"

"Gwenog Jones," Ginny said without missing a beat. "The captain of the Holyhead Harpies."

"You have a nice room. I'm really jealous." Harry grinned. "Well, except for the colour of the walls."

"Brat," Ginny muttered, shaking her head, laughing. "I thought we were here to talk to Sirius."

"Yeah, right." Harry looked around. "Let's sit on the bed."

He took his mirror out of his pocket. Holding it a little farther away so they could both be seen, he tapped it with his wand. "Sirius!"

Sirius image appeared on the mirror. "Finally."

"Hello, Sirius, I'm glad to see you, too." Ginny giggled.

"Hello, you two," Sirius replied gravely. "I have important news."

"Okay, what about?" Harry answered, suddenly expecting the worst. Even Ginny had stopped giggling.

"Bill has informed me that the Order, probably through Snape, has received the information that Voldemort wants to steal the Prophecy from the Ministry."

"Okay," Harry interjected. "But he's been trying it for months now."

"Voldemort has ordered Lucius Malfoy to bring him the prophecy within the next two weeks, no matter how," Sirius stated. "We suspect he will try to blackmail or bribe Fudge to get his hands on the prophecy. But Fudge is under pressure because of the Umbridge trial and the corruption allegations against him. That's why we think it's very likely that Malfoy will try to break into the Hall of Prophecy to steal it."

"Hmm," said Harry. "What can we do about it?"

"That's why I called you, Harry," Sirius explained. "We're going to steal the prophecy by ourselves before Malfoy gets the chance to nick it."

"Oh." Harry gave Ginny a surprised look. She was obviously pondering everything Sirius had said.

"We think Malfoy won't go into the Ministry before the weekend. The ministry is always crowded on weekdays. Another thing is that, according to Bill, the prophecy can only be touched by someone who is a party to it. This would be Voldemort, or you, Harry, or the person who made the prophecy. We don't know who made the prophecy, but we suspect Malfoy doesn't know that he won't be able to touch the prophecy."

"When do we go into the Ministry?" Ginny asked.

"The Order is still guarding the Prophecy," Sirius explained. "Next weekend, it's Bill's turn to stand guard again. We want to go into the Hall of Prophecy during one of his shifts, preferable Saturday night."

"Does Dumbledore know about it?" Harry asked.

"No, not yet." Sirius shook his head. "In his position as Chief Warlock, he certainly knows the means and ways to remove the prophecy, and I've been wondering for some time why he's never made any plans to retrieve it."

"Where will I meet you?" Harry asked.

"No, the question is, where will we meet you," Ginny corrected him.

"Ginny, you ..."

"I'm coming with you." Ginny stubbornly glared at him.

"Gin, I don't want you to come. It's too dangerous," Harry insisted.

"Okay," Ginny said with a dangerous undertone. "Would you stay behind if I asked you because it's too dangerous?"

"Of course not. You've heard Sirius. I need to go." Harry declared.

"And so do I."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Wednesday, February 14th, 1996**

Harry took Ginny's hand and led her through the door. "Last Monday you were so happy to spend some time in your room, so I got the idea to bring you here for our Valentine's picnic," Harry explained, not sure if Ginny would like his idea. "What do you think?"

Ginny looked about, smiling. "It's always great to be back at the Burrow." She slowly walked about the living room, her eyes wandering over the shelves and the cupboards.

"Let's make it homey." Walking up to the fireplace, she lit the fire with a wave of her wand and continued her rounds.

"Look." She stopped in front of a picture of her family waving to her and eyed it fondly. "Here we're all in Egypt visiting Bill. I haven't seen the picture for ages." She smiled happily and moved on.

Picking up a book from a shelf, Ginny cheered. "Oh. I've been looking for this book everywhere. I must have forgotten it when we went back to Hogwarts for my third year."

"What book is it?" Harry asked.

"Oh," Ginny grinned shyly, "just a silly romance." She looked around uncertainly. "Do you think the Room of Requirements will allow me to take the book with me?"

"Just try it." Harry shrugged.

Grinning sheepishly, he removed the invisibility cloak he'd used to hide the picnic basket on their way to the seventh floor. "I wasn't sure if we'd find something to eat here, so I asked Dobby to prepare a picnic basket."

Ginny snorted. "I was worried we'd both have to cook dinner together."

"No, not on Valentine's Day." Harry shook his head. "Maybe next time ... if you want."

"Cooking with you?" Ginny looked at him, contemplating the idea. "I'd like that." She walked up to Harry and helped him set the table.

"It's a strange feeling to have a date with your boyfriend in your home when your parents are away," Ginny chuckled.

"I thought you'd like to be at home again." Harry smiled haltingly.

"Oh, I do." Ginny giggled. "It even feels a bit adventurous, as if Mum could walk around the corner any moment and catch us red-handed."

"Don't say that too loud." Harry chuckled. "You never know what surprises the room has in store."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

"Do you think we can leave the house?" Ginny asked thoughtfully, as she sipped her Butterbeer to wash down the last bites of her dinner.

"Let's try," Harry replied, taking her by the hand and leading her to the back door.

They pressed their noses against the door pane and tried to peer out into the darkness.

"It's pitch black," Ginny muttered disappointed. "Is the backyard really out there?"

Harry pushed the doorknob and carefully opened the door a bit. An icy draught blew through the crack of the door. "Do you really want to head out?" Harry gave Ginny a questioning look.

"Why not?" Ginny shrugged. "We're here once, so let's have a look."

Harry grinned in amusement. Opening the door completely, he stepped out into the backyard, taking Ginny by the hand.

In the faint light of the moon peering through the clouds, he glanced over the backyard of the Burrow. In the cold wind billions of small snowflakes were dancing, melting the moment they touched the damp ground.

Ginny cuddled closer to him and looked around. "It's so cold here, but it's beautiful. I'd like to come back more often."

"Back in the backyard? In this weather?" Harry asked amused.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny poked him in the ribs. "Back to the Burrow. I really miss it."

Closely embraced, they stood silently in the darkness, watching the snow fall. Inhaling in the scent of Ginny's hair, Harry smiled contentedly. As Ginny began to shiver, she snuggled closer to Harry.

"You're lucky the Triwizard Tournament doesn't take place this year." Harry looked down at her gravely.

"Why is that?" Ginny replied, confused.

"You don't have to freeze in the cold at the bottom of the Black Lake until I save you." Harry grinned at her cheekily.

"Brat!" Ginny thrust her elbow into his ribs, returning his cheeky grin.

"Let's go inside, you're freezing." Harry gently bit her ear.

"Sounds like an offer to warm me up," Ginny laughed.

"If you ask nicely," Harry smirked and led Ginny back in the living room.

He slouched on the couch while Ginny turned on the wireless, searching for a station playing her favourites. When the Greasy Buckets sounded from the radio, she turned around with a blissful cheer. Hurrying over to Harry, she jumped at him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Urgh, Ginny," Harry groaned, what earned him a giggle.

Straddling his legs, Ginny was sitting on his lap, looking into his eyes. She gave him a smug smile. "Now, let's enjoy the cosy part of the evening, Harry."

She laid her head on his shoulder, her lips lingering on the skin of his neck. Harry gasped for air when he felt Ginny's breath as she slowly trailed kisses from his neck down to the collarbone, her hands wandering over his bare back under his shirt.

As she leaned her forehead against his, smiling at him, he pulled her closer and gently kissed her lips. Inhaling the flowery scent of her hair, he let his tongue slowly glide over her lips. With a deep moan, she granted him access. They let their tongue tips dance around each other. A shiver ran down his spine when Ginny deepened the kiss by pushing her tongue forward to explore his mouth. He reached with his hand into her hair, holding her head to keep her lips firmly pressed against his. The lack of oxygen and Ginny's bum continuously grinding over his lap, made him gasp for air.

Harry was just about to kiss her again when Ginny pulled away.

She bit her bottom lip and grinned at him mischievously. "Hmm, Harry, that's in the way," she murmured, reaching for the hem of his shirt and began pulling it upwards. Without thinking, Harry took off his glasses and helped her removing his shirt.

"Help me," he heard Ginny whisper as she started pulling her own shirt over her head. Harry assisted her to drag her flaming red hair through the neckline of her shirt.

"Ginny," he gasped, realising that Ginny was not wearing a bra Putting his glasses on again, his eyes instantly wandered over her breasts.

When, open-mouthed, he finally lifted his eyes to look her in the eye, Ginny chuckled. "I thought it would be easier for you when I didn't wear a bra."

"May I?" Harry asked, with a goofy grin on his face.

"If you want to." Ginny smiled.

When Harry cupped her breasts with his hands, Ginny closed her eyes, smiling.

"What do you think?" Ginny opened her eyes again, giving Harry an expectant look.

"It's...It feels wonderful." Harry confessed.

Ginny flushed slightly and sank into Harry's arms, pressing her upper body against his. Harry relished the feeling of bare skin on bare skin.

Then, somehow, they were kissing again. Harry didn't waste time. Brushing his tongue against her lips, he asked for invitation. He was not disappointed.

She opened her lips for him, and as soon as he entered, their tongues started exploring their mouths again. Harry closed his eyes and indulged in the beguiling sensations.

He groaned when Ginny started grinding her bum in his lap. She giggled when she noticed his discomfort, increasing her efforts to arouse him.

Her movements, the kisses and Ginny's bare breast against his chest made Harry gasp for air and groan Ginny's name.

To ease the increasingly passionate pressure in his groin, he let his hand slide down Ginny's back and cupped the firm warmth of her bottom. Lifting her slightly to reduce the pressure, he hugged her tightly. "Harry!" Ginny groaned.

Clinging closely to Harry, Ginny let herself fall sideways onto the sofa. Her left hand held his head, gently ruffling his hair. Putting her forehead against his, she looked him in the eyes. "Relax, Harry."

Harry winced as he felt Ginny open the upper button of his trousers and let her hand slip into his boxers.

"Ginny ..." he moaned as she clasped him and stroked him slowly. His eyes opened widely when a shiver went through his body, making him groan, "Ginnieee."

Out of breath, he closed his eyes and felt the shivers slowly fading away. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Ginny's smug grin. Giving him a peck on the lips, she pulled her hand out of his trousers.

She watched the milky substance on her fingers with interest, murmuring, "This was fun."

"Ginny," Harry said sheepishly. "What about you?"

"You'll get your chance." She kissed him firmly on his lips. "And I hope soon." Reaching for the blanket covering the sofa, she wiped her fingers.

Pulling her closer, Harry looked into her eyes.

Intertwining their legs, Ginny snuggled up to him and sighed satisfied. "I'd never thought I'd do this for the first time in our living room." Giggling, she went on, "Next time we come here, we go up to my room. It's more comfortable in my bed."

"Would you rather turn the light on or off?" Harry gave her an exploring look.

"Prat." Ginny grinned challengingly, and put her forehead against his. "I want to see you."

The idea of seeing even more of Ginny made Harry blush. "I like the idea."

Pulling her knee up, Ginny ran her leg over Harry's thigh, smiling smugly at him.

"Ginny," Harry groaned.

"Admit it, Harry. You can hardly wait." She giggled.

"We should come here more often." Harry kissed her. Resting his head on a pillow, he pulled Ginny closer. As she laid her head comfortably on his shoulder, he pulled the sofa blanket over them both.

They laid on the sofa, wrapped in each other's arms, just enjoying the crackle of the fire and the low music.

"I'd actually considered having our picnic at your pond," Harry revealed after a while. "But I wasn't sure if the room would hold the water."

"Do you think we can ask the Room of Requirement for sunshine, Harry?" Ginny gave Harry a questioning look. "A picnic in the cold doesn't sound romantic."

"We could at least try," Harry replied.

"You're right. But I'm afraid that after all this time my bathing costume doesn't fit any more."

"Ask your Mum to send you a new one," Harry suggested.

"She's going to ask me what I need a bathing costume for in the middle of the winter." Ginny chuckled. "But if we two are alone, we won't need bathing costumes."

Harry looked at Ginny in surprise. When he realised that she was serious, he thought about her suggestion. "If you want," he finally agreed, a silly grin crossing his face.

Ginny looked at him dreamily, obviously pondering something.

"What do you want to do?" she asked suddenly. "I mean, after Hogwarts."

"Huh?" Harry met her eyes. "Do you mean my career choices?"

"Hmm," Ginny nodded, smiling expectantly at him.

Harry lifted his hand and caressed her cheek, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. "I'm not sure. We're having a consultation with McGonagall about it in a few weeks."

"You really don't know what you want to do later?" Ginny looked at him searchingly.

"I really don't know." Harry grimaced. "Who knows if I can do anything at all as long as Voldemort is after me."

"Yeah, that's true," Ginny agreed with a sad smile. "But what would you like to do if Tom was not there?"

"And you?" Harry turned the table. "What would you like to do?"

"Oh, I'm not sure, but I like flying," Ginny admitted. "Yes, definitely something with flying."

"Do you want to play Quidditch professionally?" Harry asked in surprise.

"That would be fun," Ginny replied. "But I would rather do something on my own."

"That sounds good," said Harry enthusiastically. "Maybe we can make racing brooms or Quidditch brooms. Can you imagine the fun testing brooms all day?"

"Yes, something like that." Ginny nodded affirmatively. "But unfortunately, these are just dreams."

"Why?" Harry asked astonished.

"If you want to start something on your own you need money. Money I don't have," Ginny explained.

"We could talk to Sirius," Harry answered. "He once said I have a vault full of money in Gringotts. I'll inherit the Potter fortune when I turn seventeen. I don't know how much that is exactly, but we can ask Sirius."

"Oh, Potter," Ginny replied with a mischievous grin. She put her forehead to his and looked into his eyes. "It seems you're a good catch. Unfortunately, I'm as poor as a church mouse. I'm afraid you'll dump me as soon as you'll get all your money."

"Oh, Ginny. You're a keeper. Why should I dump a keeper?" Harry grinned back.

Ginny leaned forward and whispered in Harry's ear, "You seem to have confused me with someone else. Remember, I am a chaser."

"Oh, really?" Harry mocked her. "Then I'll have to think it over again."

"Dare you!" Ginny jabbed her index fingers into Harry's ribs.

Harry pulled Ginny closer and kissed her. His tongue slid over her lips, begging for entrance. Slowly, their tongue tips began to dance around each other again. The more the lack of oxygen and the scent of Ginny clouded Harry's senses, the more passionate the kiss became. When Harry finally broke the kiss, gasping for air, he smiled happily at Ginny.

Amazed, Harry realised how comfortable he felt, lying tightly entwined, skin on skin with Ginny, on the sofa. Being honest with himself, he knew he could hardly wait to come back here. With a satisfied sigh, he pulled Ginny closer and kissed the tip of her nose.

Looking Ginny into the eyes, Harry smiled. "We'll come back here as soon as we're back from the Ministry."

"Yeah," Ginny sighed. "The Ministry."

"If everything goes well, Bill will let us in, I'll take the prophecy and we'll head back to Hogwarts," Harry said.

"Yeah," Ginny snorted. "It'll be quite easy."


	10. Chapter 10: Inside the Ministry

**Saturday, February 17th, 1996 (Harry POV)**

Harry closed his Transfiguration textbook and glanced over at Ginny, who was sitting at her favourite spot by the window, leafing through a Quidditch magazine. When she looked up, he gave her a short nod. It was about time to leave. They wanted to meet with Sirius at the gate to the Hogwarts grounds in half an hour.

Ginny put the magazine aside and walked up to Harry. "Let's take a walk about the castle, Harry."

"Great idea," Harry agreed. "We've been sitting here all day, studying." He waved to Ron. "I leave my books here. I'll pick them up when we come back."

Ron gave him a suspicious look. "Okay. I take it you two will be back before curfew?"

"Sure, Ron," Harry replied nodding to Hermione who was sitting at the nearby table, half hidden behind a pile of books. "See you later."

Harry followed Ginny through the portrait hole. He took her hand, and together they hurried down to the Entrance Hall. Relieved that they had met no one on their way downstairs, they slipped through the door out to the school yard.

An icy wind blew in their faces as they sought shelter in the wind shadow of the entry portal. Pressed against the wall to escape the wind, Harry looked at Ginny. "Are you sure you want to come with me?"

With chattering teeth, she returned his gaze. "Come on, call Dobby."

"As you wish," Harry replied. Cocking his head, he listened into the darkness. When he was sure they were alone, he called out, "Dobby!"

Turning up in front of them, the house-elf looked around, frightened. Visibly uncomfortable in the cold, he was shaking like a leaf.

"Sorry, Dobby," Harry apologized. "Can you please bring us the winter robes we'd put on our beds?"

The elf answered with something he couldn't understand because of his chattering teeth.

"Oh, and please take care..." Harry started, but the elf was already gone. "...that nobody notices you."

"Hmm, it'll turn out all right." Ginny shrugged.

Moments later, Dobby turned up again with two winter robes over his shoulders.

"Thank you, Dobby," Harry said, taking the robes. He chuckled as the elf disappeared the moment he got rid of the clothes. Handing Ginny her robe, he donned his own.

"Oh, gloves," Harry said as Ginny pulled hers out of her bag and put it on.

"You have a memory like a sieve, Potter." Ginny shook her head in disbelief. "It's winter."

"Real men don't need gloves," Harry replied, reaching for Ginny's gloved hand.

"Real men. My arse," Ginny sniggered, putting up the hood of her robe.

Silently, they made their way down to the Hogwarts gate, the thin layer of snow crunching underfoot as soon as they left the school yard.

Twice, Harry paused, listening into the darkness because he had the feeling someone was following them. But there was nothing.

As they reached the gate to the Hogwarts grounds, Harry pulled his wand. "Lumos."

He looked around. "Sirius? Are you there?"

A bark sounded somewhere in the darkness, and a black dog broke through the snow and jumped up on the gate.

Harry opened the gate and the two teenagers slipped out.

"Hi, Sirius," they greeted the dog, patting his back.

Suddenly a voice came out of the darkness. "What are you doing out here?"

Startled, Harry turned around and looked into the angry eyes of Hermione.

"Yeah, mate," Ron demanded, standing next to Hermione. "What made you sneak out of the castle in this lousy weather? Do you know what time it is?"

"Erm..." Harry began, visibly nervous.

"Not here," Ginny demanded, while Sirius barked his approval. "Let's find a safer place."

They followed Sirius the way down to Hogsmeade until the lights of the village came into view. Just off the road, behind a hedge, Sirius turned back into his human form.

"So, where are you going?" demanded Hermione.

Harry glanced at Sirius, who shrugged. Then he glanced at Ginny, who did the same, but at least she mumbled, "Well, tell them."

Harry let his gaze wander from Hermione to Ron, and shrugged, too. "We are on the way to the Ministry to steal the prophecy."

"What?" Hermione yelled. "The Ministry? That's too dangerous ... and it's forbidden. They'll expel you."

"Not to mention that we may end up in Azkaban." Harry rolled his eyes…, then found himself taken aback to realise that he was only now aware of this possibility. He should have insisted that Ginny had to stay behind. He looked up and cringed when he saw the expression on her face.

"Forget it," she hissed. Obviously, she already knew his train of thoughts.

"We need to prevent Voldemort from getting a hold of the prophecy," Harry explained.

"The prophecy is guarded by the Order," Ron replied. "How do you plan to get it?"

"Bill is standing guard tonight," Ginny said. "He is waiting for us."

"Sirius, how can you let this happen?" Hermione reproached the Animagus.

"If Voldemort gets the prophecy, Harry's in mortal danger," Sirius replied.

"Damn," Hermione cursed, quite un-Hermione-like. "That's insane." She glared at Harry, wide-eyed. "I'll come with you."

"Of course, I'm going, too," Ron said before Harry could complain.

"It's too dangerous." Harry shook his head. "I won't allow you to come with me."

"Who said we'd ask for permission?" Hermione replied.

"Enough," Sirius cut in. "We need to hurry. Bill is waiting for us. I'd just expected Harry; he needs to be there because he's the only one who can take the prophecy." He looked around and sighed. "But, it shouldn't be too dangerous. We will go in there, Harry will take the prophecy, and then we'll disappear again."

"How do we get there?" Hermione asked.

Sirius reached into his pocket and pulled out the figurine of a black dog.

When Harry recognized the figurine, he rolled his eyes.

"Is this a portkey?" Hermione asked.

"It is." Sirius nodded.

"You can't portkey into the Ministry," Hermione declared.

"Dumbledore can, and Bill can as well," Sirius said. "He's been making the portkeys for the Order members who've been guarding the prophecy."

"The use of unauthorised portkeys is forbidden," Hermione huffed.

"Come on." Sirius beckoned. "We need to hurry. Touch the dog. All of you."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

Moments later, the five of them appeared in the corridor leading up to the entry of the Department of Mysteries. Harry stumbled a bit and grabbed Ginny's arm to steady himself. Looking around, he saw a big black wooden door at the end of the corridor.

Out of nowhere, Ginny's brother, Bill, suddenly appeared in front of them. He looked at the teenagers in surprise. "Ginny, what are you doing here ... and Ron?"

Ginny gave her brother a defiant look. "I'm not going to let Harry walk around here alone in the middle of the night."

"Harry is perfectly safe with Sirius and me," Bill replied.

"... and he is even safer with us." Ginny gave her brother a challenging look. "Besides, according to Sirius, it shouldn't be dangerous. We will go in, Harry will take the prophecy and we will go out again in no time."

Sirius looked at Bill apologetically. "If I hadn't brought them all, they'd still be arguing with me."

"Okay." Bill shrugged, rolling his eyes. "I can't send you back, and standing around here, wearing holes in the floor, won't help us either." He pointed in the direction of the wooden door. "Follow me."

He turned and walked up to the door with long strides. Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and led her toward the doorway. A quick glance confirmed him that the others were following as well.

"I didn't waste my time and already removed the locking charms from the door," Bill explained, pulling the door open.

They entered a round room with a dark marble floor and twelve doors with evidently no door handle.

As the entry door closed behind them, the walls suddenly began to rotate.

"Where are we going," Harry asked, confused when the walls stopped rotating.

"Hall of Prophecy," Bill said with a loud and clear voice. The walls rotated again. When they came to a halt, the door in front of Bill opened. He motioned them to follow him and stepped through the door.

They entered an enormous hall. The corridor in front of them led through endless rows of shelves, occasionally crossed at right angles by other corridors.

"Harry, you must walk ahead now." Bill stepped aside and let Harry pass. "If everything works well, you should find the prophecy without any problems. The others follow me. Sirius, make sure, you're the last."

Harry went ahead. On the shelves on either side of the corridor stood glass orbs on labelled wooden bases. The labels had names on it.

Harry turned left at the second cross and stopped after a few steps. In front of him sat a glass orb on a wooden base with a label right beneath a prophecy, stating

S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.

Dark Lord

and (?) Harry Potter

The words _'Harry Potter'_ , written in red letters, obviously had replaced the question mark at some point in time. Probably on that Halloween night when Voldemort had decided to make Harry his equal.

Harry took the glass orb from its wooden base and stared at it. This damned thing was the reason his parents had died. It was the reason Voldemort was hunting him. Harry shook his head in disbelief.

Then, from behind, came a familiar drawling voice.

"Very good, Potter. Now turn around, nice and slowly, and give that to me."

"What makes you think I'd do that, Malfoy?" Harry asked, slowly turning in the direction of the voice.

Five Death Eaters with silver masks slowly walked up to them, blocking their way back. Their leader, whom Harry had recognized by his voice, removed his mask and held out his left hand, palm up.

"Don't you want to introduce us to your friends, Lucius?" Sirius said. "Are they shy, or are they cowards? They're hiding behind such ugly masks."

"Shut up, Black," Malfoy replied, icily. "I'm talking to Potter."

"There's nothing to talk about," Harry returned.

"For the last time, Potter, give-this-prophecy-to-me," Malfoy said, emphasizing every word.

Harry felt Ginny walk to his side, brushing her shoulder against his. The others also closed the ranks, as far as the narrow corridor allowed it, ready to fight back.

"My dear cousin has summoned up a whole kindergarten." A mocking female voice taunted from behind Malfoy. "Is this all the Order has to offer?"

"Give me the prophecy, and you can all go home unharmed." With his wand, Malfoy gestured to his outstretched hand.

"Okay. Then take it." Harry said suddenly. Grinning mischievously, he slowly extended the hand with the glass orb and let it clumsily slide through his fingers.

Startled, Malfoy jumped forward. Forgetting his wand in his confusion, he tried in vain to catch the orb before it shattered on the floor.

Taking advantage of the disorder among the Death Eaters, Harry fired a Stupefy at Malfoy. Realizing that his friends were following his example and all but one Death Eaters were laying on the floor, he stormed forward. He slammed his shoulder into the chest of the last standing Death Eater and ran, followed by the others, to the door of the Hall of Prophecy.

When he reached the round room with a dark marble floor, he looked around in panic. Without thinking, he shook the next door and ran into the room as it opened.

"Harry, wait." He heard Bill's voice. "That's the wrong way."

When he turned around, he saw that all his friends had followed him. He looked about and noticed a round podium in the middle of the room with a stone staircase leading up to the platform. In the centre of the podium stood a stone arch whose opening was covered with a weird veil, seemingly made of milky air.

"We must take the other door," Bill called, pointing back to the door they had just crossed.

At that moment, four of their pursuers hastened through the door, forming a semicircle blocking the exit.

"You are outnumbered," Sirius called. "The prophecy is destroyed. Leave us alone and we'll let you go unharmed."

"You let the kids fight for you, Black?" laughed Malfoy. "We will bring Potter to the Dark Lord instead of the prophecy. And if I let you disappear here in the Chamber of Death, I'll get the Black Inheritance as a reward."

"Leave the dog to me, Lucius." Bellatrix's diabolic laugh echoed through the room.

With a devilish grin, Malfoy threw a Stupefy at Harry, shouting, "Remember, we need the boy alive."

Harry tried to dodge the spell. He lost his balance and stumbled, crashing into the steps of the podium, banging his tailbone on the steps. Pushing past the pain, he leapt to his feet. Turning back to Malfoy, he caught a glimpse of Ginny launching a blazing Reducto curse on the floor in front of their opponent.

The Death Eater cried out in pain as stone splinters hit him.

Encouraged by Ginny's powerful reaction, Harry attacked the Death Eater with another series of Stupefies, forcing Malfoy into the defensive.

Taking advantage of the brief second Malfoy needed to erect a shield, Harry surveyed the room. Sirius was duelling with his cousin, while Ron and Hermione were concentrating on a stouter Death Eater. Bill had turned to the fourth Death Eater, keeping him in check with a curse Harry didn't recognize.

As Malfoy cancelled his shield to attack again, Harry sent a Diffindo in his direction, his opponent barely managed to dodge.

Distracted by a trickle of cold sweat running down his cheek, Harry ran his hand over his face, staring at Malfoy.

Malfoy had lost his superior grin.

Harry increased the pressure on the Death Eater with another series of Reducto spells. Suddenly hearing the smack of a Stunner deflect away, mere inches from his head, Harry turned in astonishment to find Ginny shielding them both from errant spells.

Flashing her a grin of thanks, he dared another look about the room.

Bill had pushed his opponent back to the door. He followed him in his escape through the door.

Hermione fell to the ground with a scream. She held her bleeding arm. "Bastard," Ron shouted. With three angry Stunners, he pushed the Death Eater onto the defensive. Bill, who returned at this moment, bound the thug with a wave of his wand.

Suddenly a sense of horror crept over Harry. He stared in the direction of his godfather, watching the man stumble the last step up to the podium and fall to the floor.

"No, Sirius!" Harry yelled when Bellatrix Lestrange leaned over his godfather, her wand pointing at his chest.

"If you'd stayed in your cell in Azkaban, my dear cousin, you wouldn't die today." Confident of victory, she looked over at Harry, teasing him. "Potty baby, say goodbye to your dogfather."

Then three things happened at the same time. Lying on the floor, Sirius managed to send a Stupefy towards Bellatrix. Although he didn't hit her properly, its impact made the grinning witch stumble backward. At the same time, Ginny had fired a Blasting Hex at Bellatrix but was hit by Lucius Malfoy with a Cutting Curse. Ginny's Hex missed its target and hit the floor behind Bellatrix. The chunks of stone blown off the floor made the stumbling witch fall backwards and vanish through the veils of the odd archway.

Unfazed by her bleeding arm, Ginny returned to attack. Grimacing in pain, she threw a curse at Malfoy narrowly missing her opponent. Desperately, she watched her wand slipping out of her trembling fingers and rolling down the stairs.

Harry gave Malfoy a hateful glare. The older man looked around. Realizing that he was outnumbered, he turned and headed hastily to the doorway.

Enraged, Harry ran after the fleeing Death Eater. "Stay, you coward!" he yelled. "Like father, like son. You're all cowards."

Undeterred, Malfoy hurried on. He avoided the elevators and ran up the stairs to the atrium. On the way up, Harry had almost caught up with Malfoy when the blond man suddenly halted and bent to one knee, bowing his head. "My Lord."

Harry stopped in his tracks.

Next to the Fountain of Magical Brethren stood Voldemort. In his pale face, the red slits of his eyes were glowing. The serpentine nostrils sucked in air as if they wanted to smell Harry. His grimace twisted into something that was supposed to be a smug smile. "Harry Potter, I'm pleased we meet again."

Harry's eyes darted about, looking for a way out. His heart was pounding. Was it the right time to face Voldemort? Had the monster created more Horcruxes? Did he even stand a chance against Voldemort?

"The pleasure is all mine, Tom." Dumbledore slowly walked from a dim-lit corner of the atrium towards Voldemort. Harry's heart almost skipped a beat.

Giving him a spiteful smile, Voldemort slowly turned to Dumbledore. "Dumbledore, you old fool. I knew you couldn't resist protecting Potter. I'm afraid it's the last thing you'll do." Grinning he continued, "I am very pleased to get rid of two nuisances at the same time today."

Voldemort threw a killing curse at Dumbledore but missed him. Instead, he hit the Wizard in the Fountain of Magical Brethren, blowing his head off.

Dumbledore answered with a barrage of curses that Voldemort blocked effortlessly.

"You don't want to kill me, Dumbledore?" Voldemort asked snootily.

"You know that I do not enjoy taking lives, Tom." Dumbledore continued to approach him.

"There's nothing worse than death, Dumbledore!" Voldemort hissed.

'You are quite wrong,' said Dumbledore.

"You know that you can't kill me." Voldemort sneered. "I know that you've discovered my secret, Dumbledore. But you don't know where I've hidden my new treasures," boasted Voldemort. "I am immortal."

"Are you so sure? Is it worth the risk of dying, Tom?" Dumbledore asked.

Infuriated, Voldemort raised his wand and threw another jet of green light at Dumbledore, who turned and disappeared seemingly without effort. Moments later, he reappeared a few feet behind Voldemort, waving his wand towards the Fountain of Magical Brethren. To Harry's amazement, the statues of the fountain came to life. As the centaur attacked Voldemort, the evil man waved his wand towards Harry. "Avada Kedavra!"

Terrified, Harry stared motionlessly at the green beam of light spurting out of Voldemort's wand. The distance was too short to respond to. There was nowhere to seek shelter.

Leaping from his place on the pedestal in front of Harry, the golden house-elf statue took the killing curse and shattered into thousand pieces. The goblin statue crashed into Harry, effectively knocking him out of the way of the deadly curse. Gasping for air, Harry grappled about him in search of his wand but couldn't find it anywhere.

A scratching sound made him look up. Hidden behind a pillar, he saw Ginny's huddled figure on the floor. Her pained face very pale, she was holding her injured arm. With a grimace, she reached into the pocket of her robes and pulled out her spare wand.

When Harry nodded encouragingly at her, she placed the wand on the floor and slid it over to him.

Harry grabbed the wand and peered cautiously past the goblin. Open mouthed, he watched Dumbledore flicking his wand to lift the water of the fountain into the air. With another flick of his wand, the water transformed into a 30 feet wide maelstrom unloading over Voldemort. "Protego!" With a pitched laughter Voldemort let the water bounce off his protective shield. Harry quickly sought shelter behind the goblin to avoid being swept away by the flood.

Slowly peering over the goblin's shoulder, Harry's blood ran cold when he heard Voldemort's devilish laughter. Flinching, he watched in awe the atrium's glass dome detonating. It burst into billions of shards and, with a flick of Voldemort's wand, smashed down at Dumbledore as a swarm of deadly vitreous arrowheads.

Harry stepped out from behind the goblin. He raised his wand, yelling, "Expelliarmus!"

Dumbfounded, Voldemort turned to Harry. His wand slipped out of his fingers and landed in Harry's outstretched hand.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Still Saturday, February 17th, 1996 (Ginny POV)**

Grimacing with pain, Ginny had dragged herself up the stairs to the atrium. Her left hand held her bleeding wand arm in a vain attempt to stop the pain.

Horrified, she froze on the last step as she saw Tom's killing curse flying towards Harry. A deep breath escaped her as the statue of the house-elf of the Fountain of Magical Brethren threw himself protectively in front of Harry, shattering into thousands of pieces. She sought shelter behind a pillar and let herself sink to the floor.

She peered around the pillar and saw Harry frantically searching for his wand. With her uninjured left hand, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her spare wand. As she laid it on the floor, Harry looked over at her. He nodded to her when he noticed the wand. Ginny pushed the wand the few feet over to Harry. Exhausted, she leaned back against the pillar. She hoped that Harry was safe behind the goblin statue guarding him.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed a movement on the stairs she had just come up. Her brother, Bill, came creeping up the stairs. He reached into the bag that hung around his shoulder and took out something that looked like... Astonished, Ginny recognized the Basilisk fang they'd collected in the Chamber of Secrets a few weeks ago!

Behind Bill, Sirius crept up the stairs, followed by Ron and Hermione. Ron supported Hermione, who was limping and evidently had an injured arm as well. They stopped and crouched down as Bill shook his head.

Startled, Ginny pressed herself against the pillar as a flood of cold water drenched her.

Intrigued she watched Bill stabbing the Basilisk fang into something silvery...probably Slytherin's locket. Black smoke rose from the locket as a massive detonation shook the atrium.

"Harry!" Ginny shouted, peering desperately around the pillar. Her heart stopped when she saw Harry stepping out of the shelter of the goblin statue, throwing an Expelliarmus at Tom.

Terrified, she tried to get up. With the last of her strength, she stumbled forward. "Harry!" She threw her uninjured arm around his neck, sobbing.

"Potter, your time is up." She heard Tom's sneering voice. Turning towards the hated voice, she saw huge gold chunks from the statue of the house-elf flying in her direction.

Trying to protect them from the deadly barrage, the Goblin took a step forward. Absorbing the impact of the blast, the goblin statue broke into pieces.

Ginny saw Voldemort's eyes widen in horror as the deadly swarm of broken glass shards bounced off Dumbledore's shield. Bereft of his wand, he was unable to build his own shield quickly enough. Pierced by thousands of tiny, needle-sharp missiles, he collapsed, his mouth opened in a last mute cry.

There was nothing left of the Dark Lord other than blood and broken bones.

Noises from the row of the floo network fireplaces made Ginny look up. She noticed a rapidly growing, wildly gesticulating, group of ministry staff. She frowned when she noticed Lucius Malfoy sneaking past the group to flee the crime scene.

"Come on, you need to get out of here."

Startled out of her thoughts, Ginny turned and met Dumbledore's worried gaze. Putting his hand on Harry's shoulder, he pointed to the stairs down to the Department of Mysteries.

Ginny broke away from Harry and looked at him scrutinizing. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." He nodded. Taking her by her uninjured hand, Harry asked worriedly, "How's your arm?"

"It hurts a lot, and it's still bleeding," Ginny replied truthfully. "But it's bearable, nothing serious."

"Let's get out of here." Harry gave her a crooked smile.

With a last glance back at the remains of Tom, they turned and headed down the stairs where they met Sirius, Bill, Ron, and Hermione. Hermione held her injured arm bent in front of her. Ron had her other arm over his shoulders, still supporting her.

"Sirius, you'll bring the four of them back to Hogwarts." Dumbledore's grave voice didn't accept any objections. "Make sure Poppy is examining them."

Turning to Bill, Dumbledore went on, "Are there more injured down there?"

Bill nodded. "We captured a few Death Eaters."

"You'll watch them until Tonks or Kingsley show up," Dumbledore instructed Bill. "Don't let anyone else see you. As soon as you're ready, you'll go to Hogwarts. An examination won't hurt you either."

"Where is Malfoy," Harry asked suddenly.

"He fled when his Dark Lord died," growled Bill.

"Hurry," urged Dumbledore. "It will become quite crowded here at any moment."

"Come on." Sirius hissed and scurried further down the stairs.

Ginny squeezed Harry's hand. She gave Dumbledore one last look and together they followed Sirius down the stairs.

In the corridor leading up to the black wooden door to the Department of Mysteries, the others were already waiting for them.

Bill gave Sirius a questioning look. "Do you have your portkey?"

Sirius searched his pockets and pulled out the figurine of the black dog.

Bill took the figurine, tapped it several times with his wand, mumbling something incomprehensible. "Here." Bill finally returned the portkey. "It only works in this corridor. I've modified it so you're going back directly to the Hospital Wing."

Sirius took the Portkey and held it out to the four teenagers.

As the five looked at each other in confusion when nothing happened, Bill explained, "It activates in 30 seconds."

Ginny looked Harry in the eye, trying to give him a reassuring smile, as she felt the familiar sharp yank behind her navel, and the corridor in the Ministry suddenly disappeared.

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

A few seconds later they found themselves in the familiar surroundings of the Hospital Wing. As they'd become accustomed to travelling by portkey lately, their landing was not the usual mess of entangled limbs.

Ginny looked about. They were standing in front of the large window outside Madam Pomfrey's office. Peering through the window, Ginny noticed the hands of the office clock were pointing at ten to eleven. To her amazement, the matron sat at her desk even at this late hour.

The sudden movements in her ward made her looked up. She stared wide-eyed at the arrivals, got up, and hurried out of her office.

"Apparently, Albus was right again," she scolded. "It is reckless to leave Hogwarts in the middle of the night."

"Dumbledore has sent us here," Harry stated, unfazed.

"Come along!" the matron commanded, leading them all to a corner of the ward where spare beds had been prepared.

"I'll go to Dumbledore's office and wait for his return," Sirius said, waving his goodbye.

"You'll stay here." Madam Pomfrey's gaze did not accept any protest. "You can go search for Albus after I've examined you."

Sirius rolled his eyes but stayed.

The matron gave the girls an assessing look. "Miss Granger, you're first. Come over here." She led Hermione to a spare bed. Waving her wand, she made a room divider slide over to give some privacy.

After removing their winter robes and putting them on a nearby table, Ginny pulled Harry to her side and they sat down on the edge of a spare bed. Ron sat down opposite them on another bed as Sirius began to pace the room.

"What about Voldemort now?" Harry asked cautiously. "Is he gone?" He looked about, uncertain. "Did he create another Horcrux?"

"I think Bill destroyed the last Horcrux," Ginny said. "I saw him stabbing something silvery with the Basilisk fang." She looked at Harry. "But to know for sure, we need to wait for Bill."

"He should be here any moment." Sirius stopped pacing, sitting down on a chair next to their bed. "I'm pretty sure Dumbledore called the Order to clean up and to keep their ears open to prevent false rumours from spreading. Moody or Tonks will soon take over for Bill."

Ginny gave Sirius a searching glance. "Do you know if Bill has been on the island to perform the ritual? I mean, before he went to the Ministry?"

"All I know is that he considered it. He said he wanted to perform the ritual if he makes it in time to the island." Sirius shrugged. "I'm sorry, that's all I know. He didn't say anything when we arrived in the Ministry, did he?"

Ginny watched as Harry frowned, annoyed. She gave him an encouraging smile. She knew how he felt. After all, she would also like be certain that Tom was finally gone for good.

"Miss Weasley, you're next," called Madam Pomfrey from behind the room divider.

Hermione stepped out from behind the partition, wearing a wide, white hospital blouse instead of her bloodied shirt. Looking tired but with a relieved smile on his face, she took a seat next to Ron, while Ginny strode over to get examined.

Looking questioningly at Madam Pomfrey, Ginny sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Stay seated. I need to remove your shirt," the matron ordered.

The woman muttered, "Depulso!" and with a sweep of her wand Ginny's shirt disappeared.

"Lie down." Pomfrey waved her wand in an intricate pattern over Ginny's body, starting from the head downwards to her feet.

After a while, she nodded satisfied. "You're lucky, Miss Weasley. You've lost a lot of blood due to the deep cut on the wrist. Fortunately, the injury is not too complicated, and I will be able to heal it quickly. You need to take a Blood-Replenishing Potion twice. One phial now, and the other tomorrow morning. Well, at first you need to take this pain relief potion." She handed Ginny a phial of blue liquid. Holding the vial with her uninjured hand, Ginny put it to her lips and gulped it down in one go.

Moving her wand over the cut on Ginny's right wrist, Madam Pomfrey murmured a healing charm. When she was satisfied with the result, she bandaged Ginny's hand. "You can remove the bandage in two days. It's only needed to keep the wound clean."

After Ginny had gulped down a phial of Blood-Replenishing Potion, Madam Pomfrey called for Ron.

Ginny went back to take her seat next to Harry, who gave her a worried look. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Ginny nodded.

A noise from the entrance to the ward made her look up. Bill walked through the door into the room. He paused to look about and then strode over to them with a satisfied smile on his face.

Giving Sirius a bone-crushing hug, Bill called, "We did it." Looking from one to the other, he asked concerned, "How are you? Is someone injured?"

"Everything is fine," Ron replied. "Pomfrey has cured Hermione and Ginny's injuries."

"Good," Bill answered with a relieved smile.

Giving her brother an enquiring look, Ginny asked, "What do you mean 'we did it'? Have you been on the island? You know ... to perform the ritual?"

"Yep." Bill grinned. "The Horcruxes are destroyed. Just in time. I thought I'd take the last Horcrux with me to the Ministry, together with the Basilisk fang. Just in case. And when Voldemort showed up..." Bill shook his head in disbelief. "... when Voldemort showed up, I destroyed the Locket Horcrux."

There was no jubilation, as they were all still under the shock after what had happened in the Ministry, but they all had a relieved smile plastered on their faces.

Relieved, Ginny flung herself around Harry's neck, hugging him. "You're free, Harry." With tears in her eyes, she sobbed, "He's ...He's gone." Closely engulfed in each other, they stood in silence. Thousands of thoughts were running through Ginny's mind at the same time. She could hardly believe it. Tom was finally gone forever. She would be able to hold Harry in her arms like this forever.

A sudden intense yawn made her realise how tired she was. The excitement of the past hours demanded its toll.

She turned to her brother. "Bill, do you know if Dumbledore wants to see us? I'm getting tired."

"No." Bill shook his head. "I think he'll be busy for a while in the Ministry. There are certainly many things to be clarified before they'll let him go. I was quite surprised that he didn't say anything about the four of you having been there."

"Okay, then let's go to bed," Harry suggested.

"Actually, we have a reason to celebrate," Ron interjected.

"I don't feel like celebrating," Harry replied, and Ginny could only agree. "Maybe sometime in the next few days. I still can't believe that he's gone."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

 **Sunday, February 18th, 1996 (still Ginny POV)**

It had been long past midnight when they'd returned to the common room last night. Madam Pomfrey had insisted that no one leave the hospital wing before she'd examined them all. Ginny was glad that Madam Pomfrey had given everyone a small phial of sleeping potion and she'd gotten a few hours of much-needed sleep. Nevertheless, Ginny woke up a little earlier than usual and decided to take a hot shower. She had just finished showering and dressing for breakfast when the door to her dorm opened and Hermione peered in.

"Ginny, are you still there?"

"I'm ready. I just wanted to head down for breakfast." Ginny replied.

"Then let's go together. Ron and Harry are already waiting in the common room," Hermione said smiling.

"We still have five minutes before we wanted to meet." Ginny rolled her eyes. "I suppose Harry wants to talk to Dumbledore as soon as possible. Let's hope, he's already back." She went to the door, giving Hermione an examining glance. "You look as if you are almost bursting with curiosity, whether there's already something in the Daily Prophet about last night."

"Come on, Ginny. Everyone's just waiting for you," Hermione urged her.

Arriving at the foot of the stairs to the common room, they were received by the boys.

"Good Morning, Ginny." Walking up to her, Harry gave her a heartfelt hug and kissed her on the lips. Much to Ginny's surprise, Ron didn't comment on it.

"Did you sleep well?" Ginny asked Harry. "It's probably going to be a long day.

"Yeah." Harry smiled. "I'm glad Pomfrey gave us the sleeping potion." He took Ginny by the hand and together they followed Ron and Hermione down to the Great Hall.

"I'm curious if Dumbledore is already back," Harry said. "And if he's going to tell us what happened in the Ministry after we left."

"I don't think Dumbledore is the only one who wants to talk to you," Ginny pointed out. "We were seen in the Ministry, and the damage in the atrium was enormous. I'm pretty sure they're going to interrogate us."

"I thought so, too," Harry agreed. "That's why I want to know what Dumbledore has to say."

As they entered the Great Hall, McGonagall rose from the staff table and headed in their direction. "Good morning, Mr Potter, Mr and Miss Weasley, Miss Granger." She gave the students a stern gaze. "You are expected to meet the Headmaster at nine o'clock sharp in his office."

"Do you have any news from the Ministry?" Harry asked, grimacing.

Their Head of House raised her eyebrows. "The Headmaster will tell you what you need to know. Make sure you're in time, and don't forget that the Headmaster likes Butterscotch." With that, she turned on her heel and headed back to the staff table.

Hermione impatiently grabbed the copy of the Daily Prophet while Ginny fed the post owl a strip of her bacon.

"Oh," she cried out agitatedly, pointing to the front page. "That was fast." Excited, she let her eyes jump from one headline to the other, reading them aloud.

 **Minister Fudge: Lies or Blissful Ignorance - You-Know-Who has obviously returned last year - as Potter had claimed**

 **Eyewitnesses testify, You-Know-Who died last night at the Ministry - defeated by Potter and Dumbledore**

 **Is he really dead this time?**

 **Lucius Malfoy on the run**

Ginny glanced over at the Slytherin table. "Draco is nowhere to be seen. Seems, he already knows about it."

"Yeah, probably." Harry nodded in agreement. "Let's hurry with breakfast, Dumbledore certainly knows more."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

After breakfast, they headed straight for Dumbledore's office. As they reached the gargoyle at the bottom of the stairs, Harry said the password, Butterscotch. The statue moved to the side, and the four of them entered the stairs to be transported up to the office.

Dumbledore called them in before they even reached the door. When they entered the office, they found the Headmaster sitting in his chair behind his desk, his gaze wandering thoughtfully from one to the other. Pointing to four chairs that stood in a semicircle in front of his desk, he said, "Make yourself comfortable."

Ginny sat down in the chair to the right of Harry and looked expectantly at Dumbledore. She had the uneasy feeling that Dumbledore was going to punish them for leaving the castle unauthorized. His long silence didn't help to calm her nerves. Waiting for the Headmaster to open the conversation, she looked in surprise at Harry when he asked, "How did you know we were in the Ministry?"

To Ginny's astonishment, Dumbledore gave them a relaxed smile before answering the question. He looked up at the portrait of a former Headmaster. Ginny noticed a small bronze plaque on the picture frame with _'Professor Everard'_ written on it. "One of the advantages of being the Headmaster of Hogwarts are informants you can rely on." During his last words he let his gaze wander back to Harry.

Ginny tried in vain to remember if she'd seen a portrait of this mysterious Professor Everard in the Ministry. Dumbledore would always have his secrets.

"Are we being punished for leaving Hogwarts?" Hermione leaned forward, staring wide-eyed at the Headmaster. "I hope we won't get expelled."

"Don't be afraid," Dumbledore replied. "While under normal circumstances I would be obligated to punish you, it certainly won't be necessary under the given circumstances."

Relieved, Hermione closed her eyes and leaned back again.

"What happened last night after we left the Ministry? And what will happen next?" Harry looked questioningly at Dumbledore. "I assume that Voldemort is really dead."

"Ah, slow down, Harry," Dumbledore began. "Let's begin with the most important news. As Bill Weasley confirmed, the last Horcrux was already destroyed when Tom died. That's why I am assuming he's truly gone this time."

"Yes!" Ginny exclaimed, flinging herself into Harry's arms. She smiled at Ron and Hermione, who, in an unfamiliar gesture, were also hugging each other.

"You asked how it will go on from here." Dumbledore interrupted the scene of happiness. "Harry and you, Miss Weasley, were observed inside the Ministry by eyewitnesses. Both of you will be interrogated by Aurors about the events, probably this afternoon. The presence of Mr Weasley and Miss Granger has not been noticed so far."

"We won't leave Harry alone," Ron interrupted the Headmaster. Hermione nodded vehemently at his statement.

"No, you don't have to..." Harry began.

"I don't care," interrupted Ron. "We were there together, and we will go through this together."

Ginny squeezed Harry's hand and nodded, smiling as he turned to face her.

"If you really want," Harry reluctantly relented.

"Bill Weasley and Sirius also said they will be standing by your side, Harry," Dumbledore announced.

"But ..." Harry looked horrified at the Headmaster. "Sirius can't ... he must not ..."

"One of the captured Death Eaters was Peter Pettigrew." Dumbledore looked at Harry. "Your godfather is seriously considering to surrender to the Aurors to be acquitted in a trial. That's the reason he's not here at the moment."

Dumbfounded, Harry looked at his Headmaster. "Sirius is going to be released?"

Dumbledore raised his hands. "Of course, we have to wait for the hearing and the trial. But now that Peter is obviously alive and a Death Eater, Sirius's chances are pretty good to be acquitted."

Harry grinned happily at Ginny. "That's fantastic. Then, I could live with him and wouldn't have to ..."

For the second time in a few minutes, Ginny flung her arms around Harry's neck and squeezed the air out of him. Ron and Hermione happily joined in the embrace.

"Harry, I'm so happy," Hermione said.

Ron patted him on the shoulder. "Yeah, mate. I really hope we'll see each you more often at the Burrow this the summer. "

"When the excitement is over, we can resume talking about last night's events," Dumbledore said with an amused smile.

As everyone had taken their seats again, Harry spoke first. "What happened to Malfoy?"

"Lucius Malfoy disappeared after he left the Ministry last night," Dumbledore explained.

"And Draco?" Ginny asked. "He wasn't at breakfast in the morning."

"We have evidence that he left the castle tonight. To be more precise, the entire Malfoy family has apparently disappeared," admitted Dumbledore.

"I can live without him being around," Harry said. "The school will surely be a nicer place without him."

"How do the events of the last night fit with the prophecy?" Hermione interjected.

Ginny smirked. "I'd bet that question kept you awake all night."

Dumbledore chortled. "That's a good question, Miss Granger. As you probably remember, we already discussed that prophecies are not always easy to understand, and sometimes ... well, sometimes they are a bit vague. I think we've already clarified the point 'neither can live while the other survives' a few weeks ago. As long as Harry was a Horcrux, Voldemort could not die. However, the prophecy obviously didn't consider the possibility of merging soul pieces."

"But what's the power the Dark Lord knows not?" Ron asked.

"I believe it's you all, Harry's friends," Dumbledore explained. "Tom Riddle never had friends. The concept of friendship and love was foreign to him. He never understood why anyone would help Harry, putting themselves in danger in the process."

Dumbledore let his gaze wander from one to the others. "Another point the prophecy is a bit vague about is 'the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord'. While in the end, it was Harry who disarmed Voldemort, as the prophecy predicted, yet his defeat was the result of a collective effort."

Dumbledore looked at Harry, smiling encouragingly. "I think Mr Potter is glad that he doesn't have to carry the fame of defeating Voldemort alone."

"Merlin no," Harry exclaimed. "I don't want to have anything to do with the fame. I just want to be Harry." With a smile at Ginny, he added, "Your Harry."

Returning his smile, Ginny squeezed his hand.

"I don't think it'll be easy, because the public will always associate you with the defeat of Voldemort. So, let's hope your wishes come true, Harry." Dumbledore stood up to end the meeting.

"There's one last thing," Dumbledore announced. "I ask you all to never mention the Horcruxes to anyone, except, of course, in your interrogations with the Aurors. We want to prevent it from becoming common knowledge that Voldemort had created Horcruxes so that no one will come up with dangerous ideas."

 ***** Ginny & Harry *****

When they left the office, Ginny stopped at the foot of the stairs. "What are you going to do now?" she asked, looking around.

"I need to go to the library," Hermione explained. When Ron rolled his eyes, she raised her arms apologetically. "I still have to finish the Runes homework I couldn't finish when we headed to the Ministry last night."

Ron turned to Harry, giving him a questioning look. "Are you up to a game of chess?"

Harry grimaced. Obviously, he had something else in his mind. He gave Ginny a thoughtful look. Then he turned to Ron, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. What about tonight? After dinner?"

Ron threw Ginny an annoyed glance. "Okay, okay, as long as you don't hang around in the common room, snogging all day."

"No, certainly not," chuckled Harry.

As Ron turned, heading for Gryffindor Tower, Harry grinned at Ginny. He took her in his arms with a happy smile on his face. After giving her a gentle kiss, he looked her into the eyes. "Do you want to go to the Burrow with me?"

"Now?" Ginny asked.

"Now!" Harry confirmed.

"Go swimming at the pond, or in my room?" Ginny grinned mischievously.

"Exactly in that order." Harry grinned back.

"Any time, Harry."

*** The End ***

 **AN:** Thanks to all who read this story, especially to those who left some nice words in a review. If you've read this far, I suppose you had as much fun reading this story as I had writing it.

My special thanks go to my fabulous beta GHL for his continuous support and his insightful comments. It is he who we all have to thank for the better readability of this story. I really appreciate his support.

Within the next 2-3 days, I will post a short epilogue where I will outline the future life of Harry and Ginny. More or less, it will be the summary of the sequel to this story I will never write.


	11. Epilogue

Well, it's not a real epilogue, just a few bullet points of how I always imagined the future life of Harry and Ginny and those who are close to them. It's more or less the summary to the sequel I'll never write because the project would be far too big for me. If anyone wants to try, feel free to do it. Please let me know, however, because I'd be interested to read it.

 **February 16th, 1996**

Because of the possession of Dark Objects and their use on students, Dolores Umbridge is dismissed from her position as Senior Undersecretary of the Minister of Magic and sentenced to four months in Azkaban.

 **March 30th, 1996**

Due to incompetence in the office and the endangerment of the wizarding world by the refusal to accept the return of Voldemort, Cornelius Oswald Fudge is dismissed from his position as Minister of Magic. In his place, Madam Amelia Susan Bones is elected Minister of Magic.

 **April 13th, 1996**

As a result of his trial, Sirius Black is acquitted. He moves back to Grimmauld Place 12 after making it habitable again.

 **August 6th, 1996 – August 9th, 1996**

Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley travel back to 'their' island together with Sirius for a few days. Of course, Sirius just brings them there and picks them up again, but please do not tell Molly!

August 6th will forever be their anniversary, and they'll always try to spend this day on their island.

 **April 1st, 1997**

On their 19th birthday, Fred and George Weasley open the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes after they have passed their NEWTs. Without Umbridge at Hogwarts, they, unfortunately, had no excuse to leave school earlier.

 **August 1st, 1997**

William Weasley marries Fleur Delacour on the estate of the Delacour's in France.

 **September 1st, 1997**

Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley are heading back to Hogwarts for their 7th year, Ginny Weasley for her 6th year. Harry is the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, while Hermione becomes Head Girl.

 **October 13th, 1997**

Harry Potter asks the Firebolt Company to equip the Hogwarts Quidditch teams and flying classes with Firebolt brooms. In return, he agrees to give Quidditch Weekly an interview in favour of the Firebolt Company. It's one of the very rare occasions he's giving an interview.

 **November 5th, 1997**

Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley are visiting the Firebolt Company. During their stay, they get an introduction into the art of broom crafting. During their visit, Harry gives Quidditch Weekly the appointed interview.

 **January 10th, 1998**

Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley are signing a training contract with the Firebolt Company to learn the art of broom crafting after they'd taken their NEWTs.

 **August 11th, 1998**

Harry Potter proposes to Ginny Weasley on her 17th birthday during a dinner in Muggle London.

 **August 15st, 1998**

Harry Potter moves to a flat in Hogsmeade to be close to Ginny during her last year at Hogwarts.

 **September 1st, 1998**

Ginny Weasley is heading back to Hogwarts for her 7th year. She is the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. Being of legal age, she is allowed to leave the castle in the evenings, and she uses the opportunity to visit Harry as often as possible.

 **September 1st, 1998**

Harry Potter starts his apprenticeship at the Firebolt Company.

 **October 1st, 1998**

Ron Weasley joins the Chudley Cannons team management department as an apprentice.

 **October 7th, 1998**

Hermione Granger attends the University of Oxford to study Law.

 **June 10th, 1999**

The Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow is rebuilt and both, Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter move to Godric's Hollow.

 **July 2nd, 1999**

As a balance to their professional life, Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter want to play Quidditch as this has always been their passion. They join the Godric's Hollow Lions, the local Quidditch team in the 3rd amateur Quidditch League.

 **August 11th, 1999**

Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter marry at the Burrow (Molly insisted on the Burrow). It is the day the first story, The Legacy of Regulus Black starts.

 **September 1st, 1999**

Ginny Potter starts her apprenticeship at the Firebolt Company.

 **July 23th, 2000**

Harry Potter starts his job at the Firebolt Company after successfully passing the exams.

 **July 23th, 2001**

Ginny Potter starts her job at the Firebolt Company after successfully passing the exams.

 **August 1st, 2003**

Hermione becomes Undersecretary for Muggle Relationships in the office of the Minister of Magic.

 **April 13th, 2004**

James Sirius Potter, the first child of Harry and Ginny, is born.

 **June 13th, 2004**

Randolph Spudmore, the owner of the Firebolt Company, offers the Potters to take over the company because he wants to retire. The Potters accept the offer. Both parties agree to keep the purchase price confidential.

 **September 1st, 2004**

The Potters take over the Firebolt Company. Harry is responsible for the production lines, while Ginny manages the public relations departments. They are both responsible for the product development and the broom testing departments.

 **May 18th, 2005**

The Firebolt Company launches their first broom for children on the market, the Firefly No. 1.

James Sirius Potter gets the first manufactured model for his first birthday.

 **August 1st, 2005**

Ron Weasley becomes the Team Manager of the Chudley Cannons

 **September 1st, 2005**

The Potters expand their company through a line of Quidditch equipment and Quidditch clothing, directed by Angelina Weasley née Johnson, the wife of George Weasley.

 **September 19th, 2005**

Ron Weasley proposes to Hermione Granger on her 26th birthday. Ron invites her to a performance of The Tempest in the Shakespeare's Globe. He wants to make sure she is in a good mood when he asks her.

 **January 1st, 2006**

The Firebolt Company becomes the official supplier of the North American Quodpot League.

 **May 30th, 2006**

Ron Weasley marries Hermione Granger in a traditional Muggle wedding. The wedding celebration takes place at the Granger's home. After the celebration, most of the electrical equipment must be replaced because they failed due to the overpowering magic of all the Weasley's. The magical part of the wedding takes place in a private ceremony in the Ministry of Magic.

 **August 15th, 2006**

William Arthur Potter, the second child of Harry and Ginny, is born.

 **January 1st, 2008**

Hermione Weasley-Granger becomes Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

 **September 30th, 2008**

Lily Luna Potter, the third child of Harry and Ginny, is born.

 **September 22th, 2020**

Ginny, Harry, and James Potter play their first official Quidditch match for the Godric's Hollow Lions together.

Just like their parents, James and William Potter will be trained at the Firebolt Company and will later take over the management of the company. Lily Luna will become a very successful Quidditch player and, after her career, she will be responsible for the PR department of the Firebolt Company.


End file.
